Major rejig in Cong as it gears up for 2024 battle

In a wide-ranging organisational reshuffle ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge appointed three new overseers for states, including former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot. Kharge also brought back four veterans to look after key states and dropped five senior leaders.

- Saubhadra Chatterji

The reshuffle comes 10 months after Kharge took charge in February and four months after the Congress working committee was reconstituted in August, indicating prolonged discussions and accommodating many Gandhi family loyalists.

Former UPA minister Milind Deora, who didn’t have all India Congress committee responsibilities in the past few years, was made joint treasurer along with Vijay Inder Singla. At least five state overseers have been shifted to new states.

Along with Pilot, who was also made a working committee member, Deepa Dasmunshi from West Bengal and former Jammu and Kashmir state unit chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir were the new overseers. Sachin Pilot will be in charge of Chhattisgarh and Mir will look after Jharkhand and West Bengal. Dasmunshi will be in charge of Kerala and Lakshadweep, with additional charge of Telangana.

The reshuffle was announced two days after a CWC meeting on Thursday in which some leaders questioned the slow decision-making process and the functioning of Congress headquarters. Rahul Gandhi’s trusted lieutenant KC Venugopal remained as general secretary of the organisation. Similarly, Jairam Ramesh retained his post of general secretary in charge of communication.

In the latest reshuffle, the Congress president also restructured his office, appointing Karnataka MP Nasser Hussain as team lead and Pranav Jha as communication head.