Congress Implements Major Organizational Shakeup Following Assembly Election Defeats

Following consecutive Assembly election losses since the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress party has initiated a major organizational shakeup. This restructuring reflects the influence of senior leader Rahul Gandhi.

Key Positions Reorganized

The party appointed general secretaries for two states and designated in-charges for nine while removing six leaders from these roles.

Notable Appointments

Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel was brought into the AICC secretariat and designated as the general secretary for Punjab. Baghel previously served as the Delhi Congress chief after his tenure in Chhattisgarh.

Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain was appointed general secretary in charge of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, replacing Gujarat leader Bharatsinh Solanki.

Relationships Within the Party

Many of the new appointees maintain close ties to Rahul Gandhi or AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Baghel, for example, enjoys a strong relationship with Priyanka.

The exception is Hussain, who is closer to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge. Hussain previously managed Kharge’s office.

In-Charge of States

Rajya Sabha MP Rajani Patil was made in-charge of Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh, while B K Hariprasad was appointed to lead Haryana. Harish Chaudhary and Girish Chodankar were given charge of Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu & Puducherry, respectively.

Ajay Kumar Lallu, K Raju, Meenakshi Natarajan, Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, and Krishna Allavaru were also designated as in-charges for Odisha, Jharkhand, Telangana, Manipur, Tripura, Sikkim, Nagaland, and Bihar, respectively.

Leaders with Prior Experience

Several of these new in-charges have held organizational roles previously. Hariprasad, for instance, was previously a general secretary for multiple states and is now being downgraded to an in-charge position.

Rajani Patil and Harish Chaudhary have also been in-charge roles in the past. Chodankar was previously in-charge of Manipur, Tripura, Sikkim, and Nagaland.

New Faces in Leadership

Lallu, Raju, and Ulaka are new additions to the in-charge positions. Ajay Kumar Lallu was the chief of Uttar Pradesh Congress, while Raju, a former bureaucrat, worked closely with Rahul Gandhi in the SC, ST, OBC, and minority departments.

Krishna Allavaru, currently in-charge of the Youth Congress, is now responsible for Bihar as it prepares for state elections. Meenakshi Natarajan, who led the Congress’ Rajiv Gandhi Panchayati Raj Sangathan, was appointed to handle Telangana.

Outgoing Leaders

The shakeup saw six leaders being removed from their roles. These included Dipak Babaria, who held the top post for Haryana at the time of the party’s defeat in the Assembly polls.

Bharatsinh Solanki (Jammu & Kashmir), Devender Yadav (Punjab), Mohan Prakash (Bihar), Rajeev Shukla (Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh), and Ajoy Kumar (Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry) also left their positions.

The Broader Context

Friday’s reshuffle is part of a larger restructuring effort announced after the Congress Working Committee meeting in Karnataka’s Belagavi on December 26. The party aims to strengthen its organization across all levels, stating that “2025 will be the year of organisational strengthening for the party on all levels”.

Since the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress has suffered defeats in key states like Maharashtra, Haryana, and Delhi.

Conclusion

The Congress party’s major organizational shakeup reflects an attempt to reorganize and regain momentum after several electoral setbacks. The restructuring, guided by the influence of Rahul Gandhi, brings in new leadership and aims for a stronger organizational base as the party prepares for future elections.