The Congress appeared to be closer to appointing the Pradesh Congress Committee chief with party vice president Rahul Gandhi meeting with main contenders to the post on the weekend. The Uttarakhand PCC task force convenor Yogendra Khanduri has also written to the party chief Sonia Gandhi stressing on the urgency for appointing the PCC chief in view of the Parliamentary elections.
Keeping the regional and caste consideration, Rahul Gandhi is said to have met the five prominent Garhwali Brahmin contenders to the post of the Uttarakhand PCC chief. He reportedly talked individually to MlAs including Assembly Deputy Speaker AP Maikhuri, Ganesh Godiyal, Nav Prabhat, Kishore Upadhyaya and Subodh Uniyal. With Harish Rawat, a Kshatriya from Kumaon region being made the Chief Minister, the PCC chief is expected to be a Garhwali Brahmin to maintain a ‘regional balance’ and boost the chances of the party winning in the lok Sabha elections.
Sources said the five MlAs had earlier met with Congress State in-charge Ambika Soni. The five contenders represented three major factions in the party with Maikhuri representing Garhwal MP Satpal Maharaj’s faction, Subodh Uniyal from former CM Vijay Bahuguna’s faction and the remaining three from CM Harish Rawat’s faction. Meanwhile, Uttarakhand PCC task force convenor Yogendra Khanduri has written to Sonia Gandhi pointing out that Yashpal Arya had resigned from the post of PCC chief in November last year.
He requested the party chief to appoint the PCC chief at the earliest keeping in view the coming Parliamentary election. The present regional and caste equation of the State should be kept in mind and a person with clean-image, popularity and wide organisational experience should be appointed as the PCC president as soon as possible. The further delay in the appointment of the PCC chief will have a detrimental effect on the Congress in the state because of the protracted uncertainty prevailing in Uttarakhand regarding the new PCC chief, stated Khanduri in his letter.