Indira Hridayesh, Pritam Singh, Harish Rawat strong contenders for top job
A day after the Congress High Command’s nod for a change of guard in Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna submitted his resignation on Thursday. The new Chief Minister is likely to be announced by this weekend after the Central observers’ meeting on Saturday.
AICC sources said that Bahuguna’s senior Cabinet colleague Indira Hridayesh remains the frontrunner among the other strong contenders Pritam Singh, also a State Minister, and Union Minister Harish Rawat. Though the decision to change the CM was taken by Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday, there has neither been any official confirmation about it nor about Bahuguna’s replacement.
Anticipating a revolt in the party, Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who was to visit the State as Central observer on Thursday, had to defer his plans. He will now go there along with AICC general secretaries Janardan Dwivedi and Ambika Soni, who is also in charge of party affairs in the State, on Saturday.
Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal said he was in favour of a grassroot leader as the Chief Minister if the Congress central leadership goes for a change of guard in the State. Kunjwal is considered close to Harish Rawat, who was a strong contender for the Chief Minister’s post when Congress got a majority in the State in 2012.
“Appointment of a grassroot leader with an understanding of the State’s problems as Chief Minister will lead to more development activities in the State. It will also lead to a change in the work culture,” Kunjwal said without taking any name.
Several delegations of MlAs and Congress leaders from the State frequently met central party leaders in Delhi to press for Bahuguna’s ouster in the past six months. The mishandling of the rescue and rehabilitation work following last year’s devastating flash floods also brought Bahuguna’s leadership skills into question.
The change of guard in Uttarakhand became imminent when the party High Command last week started considering Indira as a replacement. AICC sources said that the central leadership has opted for a woman Brahmin face to prepare itself for the upcoming lok Sabha elections.
The Congress, with 33 members in the Assembly, enjoys the support of seven MlAs from Progressive Democratic Front that comprises three Independents, three BSP MlAs and one from Uttarakhand Kranti Dal.