Major shake-up in Maharashtra Congress on cards; Prithviraj Chavan likely to be appointed as speaker

Mumbai: A major shake-up in the Congress party is on the cards. The Congress may appoint former Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan as the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, thereby replacing the present incumbent Nana Patole who will take over as the President of the state Congress unit. Patole will succeed Balasaheb Thorat who is the Revenue Minister. Chavan has been quite vocal against the BJP government at the Centre and also its state unit on a number of issues. Chavan, who was eager to get himself inducted in the Maha Vikas Aghadi ministry, could not make it due to the limited berths that fell in the Congress party’s kitty.

However, the party high command will give its formal consent to these moves only after getting a go-ahead from the ruling ally, the Nationalist Congress Party. During the government formation last year, Chavan’s name was considered by the Congress for the Speaker’s post but because of NCP’s opposition it was dropped. Thereafter, Patole was chosen as a consensus candidate.

By appointing Patole, who had lost the Lok Sabha election to Union minister Nitin Gadkari, the party proposes to play the OBC card to revive its fortunes across the state. Patole, who was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the lower house in December last year, is perceived as a dynamic mass leader; he also enjoys a good rapport with the party high command. Incidentally, Patole has been in Delhi for the last two days and is believed to have met a couple of party leaders. Patole tried to meet party leader Rahul Gandhi but could not.