Congress revamps Maharashtra unit

The Congress party on Saturday launched itself in election mode in Maharashtra with the appointment of senior leader Balasaheb Thorat as the president of its state unit.

Besides Thorat, the Congress also appointed five working presidents broadly representing different caste groups and regions of the state where assembly elections are scheduled to be held in October.

AICC SC Department Chairman Nitin Raut, AICC Secretary Yashomati Thakur, Vishwajeet Kadam, Basawaraj Patil and Muzaffer Hussain will be the working presidents of the Maharashtra unit of the Congress.

The appointments were approved by Congress President Rahul Gandhi, AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal said in a statement here.

Congress also announced election committees for the assembly elections by getting on board leaders in the fractious state unit which failed to make its mark in the recently held Lok Sabha elections.

Thorat, a prominent Maratha leader and a multi-term legislator, is also a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee.

Thorat will chair the strategy and the pradesh election committees for the assembly polls, while former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan will head the campaign committee.

Veteran leader Sushilkumar Shinde has been appointed as the chairman of the coordination committee, while Nana Patole will lead the campaign committee.

Media baron Rajendra Darda has been appointed as the chairman of the media and communication committee, while Ratnakar Mahajan will head the publicity and publication committee.