Many Congress leaders are vying for the posts of the Leader of the Opposition in the State legislature as party interim president Sonia Gandhi gears up to put the grand old organisation on track by changing State unit presidents.
Senior leaders such as H.K. Patil, G. Parameshwara, and Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah have been competing for the post of the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly. Former Ministers S.R. Patil and R.B. Thimmapur have been vying for the post of the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council. Sources in the party maintained that Mr. H.K. Patil, who had exposed the previous coalition government’s proposal regarding the sale of 3,667 acres of land to JSW Steel in Ballari, has been lobbying for the post of the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly.
It is learnt that the party central leadership has decided to appoint a new general secretary in charge of the State too. Names of the former Minister Mukul B. Wasnik and senior Gujarat leader Madhusudan Mistry are doing the rounds. The new general secretary would replace K.C. Venugopal. Some leaders are also expecting a change of guard in the State Congress unit, and several former Ministers are eyeing the KPCC president’s post. After defeats in the 2018 Assembly and the 2019 general elections, the party central leadership was considering various factors, including caste, while identifying leaders for the post of the State Congress chief and the posts of Leader of the Opposition in the State legislature, sources said.
Karnataka : Bengaluru : Former chief minister Siddaramaiah addressing Media persons at his official residence Cuavery on 17 August 2019. Photo : V Sreenivasa Murthy | Photo Credit: V Sreenivasa Murthy
Meanwhile, KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao and Mr. Siddaramaiah attended a meeting chaired by Ms. Gandhi in Delhi on Thursday to discus issues related to celebrations of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Sources said she also held discussions with State leaders on reviving the party at district level by connecting “genuine” party workers. The Congress has proposed setting up ‘Sampaka Kendras’ at the district level for reviving the party as wells increase memberships.