AICC reconstitutes TN Congress

Chennai: It’s finally out. The Cong­ress high command has at last reconstituted the Ta­mil Nadu Congress Com­mittee (TNCC), an exercise last done 12 years ago.

AICC general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi in a sta­tement released the list of office bearers whi­ch includes 17 vice preside­nts, 29 general secretaries and 43 executive committee members — almost 90 men and women, most of who should be worried if their crown has not come a bit too late for the 2014 electoral battle.

Former Valparai legislator Kovai Thangam, a staunch loyalist of Union Minister G.K. Vasan has been appointed PCC treasurer. For that matter, the Vasan camp in the faction-ridden state Congress do­m­inates the 80-plus list. PCC president B.S. Gnan­adesikan, also a Vasan follower, had camped in New Delhi early this week wor­king on his tentative list sent in April. He must be a happy man now.

Gnanadesikan’s list was put on hold after the AICC changed its captain overseeing Tamil Nadu. Mu­kul Wasnik replaced Ghu­lam Nabi Azad. Though the Vasan loyalists are enthused by this list, many of those belonging to the camp led by Union finance minister P. Chida­mbaram do not seem happy.

One of them said the list “is old wine in new bottle” while another described this pre-poll exercise as “repairing a drowning Titanic”.

Yet another ‘critic’ said all the fizz would vanish when the four state election results are anno­unced on Sunday. “If we don’t fare well in these four elections, no party will want to go with us for 2014. What can all these committees do in such situation?” he wondered.

A seasoned Congr­es­sman said the AICC sho­uld have chosen a ‘concise’ committee. “They have included a host of old timers who outlived their utility to the party. There are close to 90 functionaries. I doubt if they would ever meet,” he said.

Some Vasan loyalists, whose names appear pro­m­inently in the list, exuded confidence that the reorganisation would propel the Congress into high action.

“No one can accuse us of being a faceless party sans structure. Now our party workers will be enth­used,” said a former MLA close to Vasan.