Azad and Sharma marked; Rahul boys supersede Lok Sabha seniors

New Delhi: In the first sign of churning aimed at ‘insulating’ Congress from pro-changers, party chief Sonia Gandhi has made additions and changes to the parliamentary party ahead of the upcoming Parliament session.

‘Loyalists’ Ahmed Patel, KC Venugopal and Jairam Ramesh have been added to the Rajya Sabha leadership to ‘rein in’ opposition leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and deputy Anand Sharma, signatories to the letter which asked for change. Ramesh has also been made the Congress chief whip in the RS, to fill a vacant post.

In the Lok Sabha, junior MPs and Team Rahul members Gaurav Gogoi and Ranvir Singh Bittu were appointed deputy leader (new post) and additional whip, respectively, superseding many senior MPs including pro-changers Shashi Tharoor and Manish Tewari. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Kodikkunnil Suresh will continue as leader and chief whip and Manikam Tagore as second whip.


Two-term MP Gogoi was earlier deputy to eight-term MP and chief whip Suresh. Gogoi now occupies a position that Amarinder Singh held in the last Lok Sabha before he returned as Punjab CM.

The ‘five-member’ group, with Sonia Gandhi as CPP chairman, will oversee party’s Parliament affairs. The moves suggest bitterness against pro-changers, conciliatory remarks of Sonia Gandhi at the CWC meet notwithstanding.

Party circles are abuzz with talk of Team Rahul seeking revenge. The appointments have been communicated to the offices of the Speaker and Rajya Sabha chairman. Sonia Gandhi is also expected to make appointments and changes in AICC, CWC and PCCs.