No wide-ranging shake-up in the Congress ranks is expected even as the party prepares for a change of guard, with Rahul Gandhi expected to take over the mantle in the next fortnight.
Multiple sources have said the old guard, which includes the likes of Janaradhan Dwivedi and Digvijay Singh, may not face the axe.
“Over the past year, he [Rahul Gandhi] has already people of his choice in important positions and sidelined the others. If at all any changes are to happen, it will be in a phased manner,” a senior Congress functionary said.
In the past six months, the All India Congress Committee has appointed three general secretaries.
Phased changes
In April, Kerala MP K.C. Venugopal was appointed general secretary in charge of Karnataka; in May, Avinash Pande was made general secretary in charge of Rajasthan replacing Gurudas Kamat; and in September, Deepak Babria replaced Mohan Prakash as general secretary in charge of Madhya Pradesh.
Similarly, four State in-charges have been changed in the past six months.
In April, A. Chella Kumar was appointed Goa in-charge, replacing Digvijaya Singh.
In June, Asha Kumari was appointed in-charge of Himachal Pradesh. In July, R.P.N. Singh was appointed in-charge of Jharkhand; in August, R.C. Kuntia was appointed Telengana in-charge, which Mr. Digvijaya Singh was handling.
Mr. Digvijay Singh, though still general secretary in the AICC, is currently not in charge of any State.
Similarly, Mr. Janardhan Dwivedi was divested of the portfolio of media in-charge.
Future of Ahmed Patel
The big question, however, hangs over the future of Ahmed Patel, long-standing political secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Mr. Patel has an uncomfortable equation with Mr. Gandhi, though sources close to him say things have improved.
“Rahul Gandhi has made many concessions to him in the past few months and the situation has vastly improved. Yes, it is true that he does not have a similar say as he used [to] in Gujarat. But we are confident that he will remain a member of the Congress Working Committee,” a functionary close to Mr. Patel said.
Sources say that more than easing out the old guard, Mr. Gandhi is expected to promote several party secretaries to better positions.
“The question is, will he have a political secretary and if he does retain that position, who will occupy it? There are many names doing the rounds, one of them is of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Maken, who is very close to Mr. Gandhi,” a senior party leader said.
