Sonia picks Ghulam Nabi Azad as JK Cong campaign chief, he declines


PTI, Aug 17, 2022, 9:59 AM IST

Congress president Sonia Gandhi Tuesday appointed former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad as the party’s campaign committee chief in the union territory, but he declined the offer.

As part of a comprehensive revamp of the organisation in Jammu and Kashmir, Gandhi also appointed Vikar Rasool Wani, considered close to Azad, as the new JK unit chief.

Azad is a prominent member of the G23 grouping within the Congress which has been critical of the leadership and has been seeking an organisational overhaul.

Azad, retired from the Rajya Sabha and was the outgoing leader of opposition, was not renominated to the upper house.

In the revamped unit, Raman Bhalla was named as the working president of J&K Congress and Azad as champaign committee chief, with former PDP leader Tariq Hamid Karra as vice chief of the campaign panel.

Hours after the appointments were made public, sources said Azad declined to accept the offer.

The Centre is wanting to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir soon and the process of finalisation of electoral rolls is underway after the completion of the delimitation exercise.

Wani replaces Ghulam Ahmad Mir who had tendered his resignation in July after holding the post for eight years.

The Congress president has accepted the resignation of Mir from the post of president, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee, a party statement said.

The Congress president appointed president and working president of the J&K unit and also constituted the campaign committee, political affairs committee, coordination committee, manifesto committee, publicity and publication committee, disciplinary committee and pradesh election committee of the UT unit with immediate effect, the statement said.

Wani (46), a resident of Banihal township of Jammu region’s Ramban district, is a two-time former legislator who also served as a minister during the Omar Abdullah-led National Conference-Congress coalition government between 2009-14.

Tariq Hamid Karra will be the vice chairman of the campaign committee headed by Azad, while G M Saroori will be its convenor, according to the statement.

The campaign committee has named 11 leaders with PCC president and working president its permanent invitees.

Mir, Tara Chand, Thakur Balwan Singh, T S Bajwa, Shabir Khan, Neeraj Kundan, Abdul Majeed Wani and Fairoz Khan are also part of the campaign committee.

Gandhi also set up a political affairs committee with Karra as its chairman and it included the likes of Azad, Mir and Saifuddin Soz.

The political affairs committee also includes Peerzada M Syed, Taj Mohiuddin, Tara Chand, Mula Ram and Khemlata Wakhlu.

The committee comprises nine leaders with AICC in-charge, PCC president and working president being permanent invitees in the panel.

The party also formed an 11-member coordination committee headed by Mir, 12-member manifesto committee under the chairmanship of Soz and nine-member publicity and publication panel led by Mula Ram.

A seven-member disciplinary committee has been formed with Taj Mohiyuddin as the chairman.

A Pradesh Election Committee headed by PCC chief has also been set up. The Election Commission had recently revised to November 25 the date of final publication of voters list of Jammu and Kashmir – the union territory’s first voters’ list after the boundaries of assembly seats were redrawn in the delimitation exercise.

After the rolls are published, the EC can technically hold assembly polls in the UT. A timeline for the election is yet to be officially declared.

Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.

Top News

Millions cast vote in historic US presidential election

Wine Merchants’ Association alleges corruption in excise dept, Minister Thimmapur refutes charge

Folk singer Sharda Sinha passes away

Maharashtra Polls: Eknath Shinde targets Uddhav for `giving up’ Bal Thackeray’s principles for power

Will appear before Lokayukta for questioning in MUDA case, says CM Siddaramaiah

Lies have short life, Cong’s ‘fake’ narrative smashed: Fadnavis

Temple idols found desecrated in Hyderabad, case registered

Related Articles More

Heroin worth Rs 3.5 crore recovered in police raid in Delhi, 2 arrested

Treated Muslims like fuel for ‘lantern’: Prashant Kishor targets Lalu, asks upper castes to stay away from Nitish

Wayanad Bypoll: Politics in country, Kerala not genuinely working for people, says Priyanka Gandhi

Malegaon blast trial: Court issues bailable warrant against Pragya Thakur

Maharashtra Polls: Eknath Shinde targets Uddhav for `giving up’ Bal Thackeray’s principles for power

MUST WATCH

Gho Pooja in Deepavali Festival

Melukote Deepavali

Ganapathi Co-operative Society Ltd

Udayavani Chinnara Banna 2024

Annapoorna Aahar | Food Places In Mysore


Latest Additions

Millions cast vote in historic US presidential election

Wine Merchants’ Association alleges corruption in excise dept, Minister Thimmapur refutes charge

Folk singer Sharda Sinha passes away

Davanagere: Man murdered by relative for insurance money; 4 arrested within 24 hours

Heroin worth Rs 3.5 crore recovered in police raid in Delhi, 2 arrested

Thanks for visiting Udayavani

You seem to have an Ad Blocker on.
To continue reading, please turn it off or whitelist Udayavani.