Patil, Gadgil probable candidates for the RS?
Mumbai: Punjab Governor Shivraj Patil and
Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) spokesman Anant Gadgil are emerging as the probable candidates for the Rajya
Sabha byelection, after the vacancy created by the resignation
of Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan.
While the process of filing of nominations for the July
22 Rajya Sabha by-election starts from Tuesday, the last date
for it is July 12.
Sources in the state Congress say that if the party
decides to accommodate the 78-year-old Patil in the Union
council of ministers during the reshuffle, he can be fielded
as the candidate for the Upper House of Parliament.
According to sources, if the party leadership takes a
decision not to retain Union ministers from the state Vilasrao
Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Murli Deora, Patil, a senior
leader from the state, can be brought in.
However,a section in the state Congress is questioning
the political utility of bringing Patil, who is known for his
bureaucratic style of functioning.
They also feel that apart from that, if Patil is brought
back in the Union cabinet, it will be a public acknowledgment
of the fact that the decision to remove him in the first place
was a wrong move. Patil, former union Home Minister, had to
resign from the ministry in November 2008 owing moral
responsibility for the Mumbai terror attacks.
There is also a talk that Patil's name is being
considered for the President or Vice President's post, as
the terms of the present ones will end next year.