The much-awaited reshuffle in the Congress drew mixed reactions in Rajasthan where the party organisation is waiting to get a new PCC chief in place of Mr C.P. Joshi, who is overburdened with responsibilities. A section of the party welcomed the changes made by the AICC in Rajasthan. Alwar MP and AICC secretary Bhanwar Jitendar Singh has retained his position.
Mr Singh is considered close to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. But the Congress dropped former minister and secretary Harendra Mirdha while inducting tribal MP Tarachand Bhagora as secretary. The party also dropped Mool Chand Meena.
According to party sources, the politically-powerful Meena community got more space while the tribal Bheel Meenas have been sidelined. The Bheel Meenas dominate South Rajasthan bordering Gujarat and several saffron organisations are active in the tribal region to woo them. The party workers appreciated Mohan Prakash’s promotion to the CWC while Sanjay Bapna has also been retained as secretary.
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Kerala parties invade cyberspace
Anil Nair
Thiruvananthapuram
March 4: With the Assembly elections around the corner, major political fronts in Kerala are invading cyberspace and using hi-tech communication technologies to lure young voters.
While the CPI(M) in Kerala is using pro-Left free software user groups to woo young minds to the Left Democratic Front (LDF) fold, the Congress has hired a team of technical experts to create pro-United Democratic Front (UDF) ripples in cyber space. According to sources in the AKG Centre, the state headquarters of the CPI(M), strategies are being worked out to give a centralised and coordinated character to pro-LDF campaigns in cyberspace this time. The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) has hired a 15-member team of technology experts.