Raj Babbar head of UP Cong

NEW DELHI: Ending months of speculation, the Congress on Tuesday appointed actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar as party chief in the politically important state of

NEW DELHI: Ending months of speculation, the Congress on Tuesday appointed actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar as party chief in the politically important state of Uttar Pradesh that goes to polls early next year.

HT Image

Babbar, 64, a Rajya Sabha MP from Uttarakhand, replaces Nirmal Khatri who was named as the chairman of the screening committee that will shortlist the party candidates for the upcoming polls. Khatri’s appointment came as a surprise since it is usually the state chief that heads the poll panel.

“It is a big responsibility which I will take up not as a challenge but as a mission,” he told HT.

The party also appointed four senior vice-presidents -- Raja Ram Pal (OBC), Rajesh Mishra (Brahmin), Bhagwati Prasad Chaudhary (Scheduled Caste) and Imran Masood (Muslim) – taking into account different caste equations.

Congress sources said all the appointments were made after due consultations between Congress president Sonia Gandhi, vice-president Rahul Gandhi and party general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad. Significantly, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was extensively involved in the deliberations and all these names had her approval as well. She visited Azad’s residence a few times in the past fortnight, including on Tuesday.