Newly appointed Punjab Congress in-charge Asha Kumari meets Sonia Gandhi

NEW DELHI: Asha Kumari, who was appointed Congress in-charge of poll-bound Punjab, today met party chief Sonia Gandhi amid indications that she may not be removed in the wake of a controversy over her conviction in a land grab case.

Kumari, who is an MLA from Dalhousie in Himachal Pradesh, was given one-year imprisonment by a Chamba court in February this year but is currently on bail.

"Kumari will continue to be in-charge of Punjab and would focus on the poll-bound state. However, she would not continue as AICC Secretary in charge of Haryana, a responsibility she was handling for quite some time under the AICC General Secretary concerned," AICC sources said.

Kumari was yesterday appointed party in-charge of Punjab to succeed Kamal Nath, days after he resigned following an uproar by BJP, SAD and AAP over his alleged role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Nath, a veteran Congress leader, had quit on June 15 as AICC in-charge of Punjab three days after his appointment.

Assembly polls in Punjab are due next year.