Former MLA Harshwardhan Sapkal has been appointed as the new president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), tasked with reviving the party in the state after its crushing defeat in the last year's assembly polls. Sapkal, a veteran politician, replaces Nana Patole, who held the position since 2021. The Congress aims to rebuild its base and prepare for upcoming local body polls, including those in Mumbai, Pune, Thane, and Nagpur. The party will also need to work with its allies, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), to strengthen the opposition against the ruling BJP-led alliance.
The Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Tuesday didn't discuss the issue of the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly and has decided to take a 'wait and watch' approach amid political developments in the state, a senior leader said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Saturday said V D Savarkar, Jawaharlal Nehru or any other freedom fighter should not be maligned as they do not belong to any political party.
Thorat, 66, has been a farmers' leader and has been involved in the cooperative movement in Maharashtra. He is also a former revenue minister
Party insiders say the high command could consider replacing state chief Manikrao Thakre, reports Sanjay Jog.
Amid the Centre's move to initiate the process for the creation of a separate Telengana state, the demand for statehood to Vidarbha in Maharashtra gained momentum, as former Union minister Vilas Muttemwar on Thursday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and demanded a separate state for the region. Muttemwar, senior Congress Member of Prlaiment from Nagpur and protagonist of the statehood campaign for Vidarbha, met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Maharashtra unit of the Congress on Thursday suspended 16 rebels, including a minister and a Member of Legislative Assembly, for six years from the party, for contesting against official candidates in the assembly elections.State Finance Minister Sunil Deshmukh, who is contesting against Rajendra Shekhawat, son of President Pratibha Patil from Amravati, and sitting MLA Rajiv Rajale, who is in fray as a rebel from Shegaon in Ahmednagart district, were among the 16 rebels.
Maharashtra Home Minister R R Patil on Tuesday said a decision on withdrawing charges against cartoonist Aseem Trivedi will be taken only after the investigation was over. Patil told reporters that he had asked the Mumbai police commissioner to find out what action could be taken against the cartoonist, who was arrested for allegedly objectionable cartoons of the national emblem and the Parliament.
The Maharashtra unit of the Congress party is divided over the nomination of Commerce Minister Anand Sharma to the Rajya Sabha from the state.
The seat-sharing talks between senior Congress and NCP leaders for next month's Assembly polls in Maharashtra remained inconclusive on Tuesday night with both sides deciding to meet again tomorrow morning.
State Congress legislators made a pitch for a change in party leadership by bringing in more new faces, especially youngsters in their Thursday meeting.
The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in Maharashtra has outdone the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and Shiv Sena on the sons of the soil issue, directing that nameplates of commercial establishments in the state should be in Marathi.The state government issued a notification on May 31, directing that nameplates of all shops, establishments, commercial organisations, hotels, theatres and restaurants be in Marathi, an official release said.
The CLP will meet at 11 am at Vidhan Bhavan, party spokesman Anant Gadgil said.
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