Amid rumblings in the state unit of the Congress, AICC Secretary H K Patil, who was expected to arrive in Mumbai to meet senior leaders of the state Congress on Friday, has postponed his visit after summons from Delhi.
The state unit of the Congress is facing trouble with several leaders said to be unhappy with the way the unit is being handled. The Congress had to face major embarrassment when Chandrakant Handore, a Dalit face it had put up for the MLC elections as its first preference, lost the elections, while Bhai Jagtap, the second preference candidate, managed to scrape through. Handore had complained to party leaders that his prospects were spoiled by people within the party, including Jagtap, who heads the Mumbai Congress.
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The Congress also had to face embarrassment after 11 of its MLAs, including former ministers, stayed away from the trust vote of the government led by Eknath Shinde. This was also probed by Congress leader Mohan Prakash, who had come to probe both cross voting and MLAs abstaining from trust vote.
There are also rumours that former chief minister Ashok Chavan is planning to quit the party. “I don’t know who is planting information against me. I have already denied the rumours that I will leave Congress. I don’t know who is starting all this,” Chavan said.
Meanwhile, H K Patil told The Indian Express, “I will meet senior leaders when I visit.’’
The state Congress’s chief spokesperson, Atul Londhe, said, “All is well in Congress. We believe in democratic principles and people speak openly what’s in their mind and people are also allowed to do so. This does not mean that there is discontent.’’