Mumbai: In an attempt to bring the warring factions of Mumbai Congress together, the party has included former union ministers Gurudas Kamat and Murli Deora in the committee to discuss seat sharing with the NCP for the next
year`s crucial civic elections.
Factions led by Kamat and Deora, both former city
presidents, and current unit chief Kripashankar Singh have
been at loggerheads for long on the seat sharing issue.
Congress is determined to wrest Brihanmumbai Municipal
Corporation (BMC) from the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance which has
ruled it for the last 15 years and wants to ensure that
factionalism is not an hurdle in achieving its goal, party
sources said.
The party panel for Mumbai comprises city unit chief
Kripashankar Singh, Leader of Opposition in the civic body
Rajhans Singh, state Industries Minister Narayan Rane, state
Women and Child Development Minister Varsha Gaikwad, state
Textiles Minister Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan, Murli Deora and
Gurudas Kamat.
Kamat is also a member of the state committee that will
decide seat sharing with NCP for ten municipal corporations,
the elections for which will also be held in February next
year.
Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, MPCC president Manikrao
Thakre, Kripashankar Singh, state Industries Minister Narayan
Rane and state Forest minister Patangrao Kadam are the other
members of the Committee.
The NCP`s state committee includes Deputy Chief Minister
Ajit Pawar, state party president Madhukar Pichad, PWD
minister Chhagan Bhujbal, state Home Minister R R Patil and
state Rural Development Minister Jayant Patil.
Apart from Mumbai, elections will be held for Thane,
Pune, Nagpur, Solapur, Amravati, Akola, Ulhasnagar, Nashik and
Pimpri Chinchwad municipal corporations.
PTI
