Bhopal: On Thursday, the Congress underwent leadership changes in preparation for the upcoming elections. They appointed Randeep Surjewala, the party’s secretary, as the person in charge of overseeing Madhya Pradesh. This decision replaced JP Aggarwal, who had been managing the party’s operations in Madhya Pradesh since September.
In another move, Mukul Wasnik, a general secretary for the Congress, was given the responsibility of leading affairs in Gujarat, taking over from Raghu Sharma. The party’s leadership in Uttar Pradesh was also revamped as Ajay Rai replaced Brijlal Khabri. It is worth noting that Rai had previously contested against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in both the 2014 and 2019 Varanasi elections but did not succeed.
According to sources within the party, these changes hint at a reorganization within the Congress that is on its way.
Surjewalas new role adds to his existing responsibilities in Karnataka, where his party recently achieved a victory. His ability to foster unity among figures like Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar was highly commendable. Insiders suggest that Surjewalas’ experience from Karnataka will be extremely valuable in Madhya Pradesh, particularly when it comes to bridging gaps between leaders like Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh. Surjewala’s close association with senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also positions him well to make decisions and mediate between leaders.
In 2018 the Congress party celebrated a victory in Madhya Pradesh. However, the political landscape took a turn in 2020 when Jyotiraditya Scindia and his supporters left, leading to the downfall of Kamal Nath’s government.