What Led to the Cancellation of District Appointments by MP Congress In-Charge?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Bhopal, Nov 28 (NationPress) A significant internal conflict has arisen within the Madhya Pradesh Congress state unit, as AICC state in-charge Harish Chaudhary has annulled all recent appointments of district and city organization secretaries made by state party president (PCC) Jitu Patwari. In a pointed letter addressed to Patwari, Chaudhary expressed grave dissatisfaction with the appointments, asserting that they were executed without his prior consent, as he is the state in-charge appointed by the party's high command.
The correspondence explicitly instructs Patwari that “no organizational appointments of any nature should be conducted without my endorsement.” Sources indicate that Chaudhary had previously issued similar written warnings to the PCC president, reiterating that the ultimate authority for organizational appointments in Madhya Pradesh lies with the AICC-appointed in-charge.
Despite these cautions, Patwari proceeded to announce organization ministers in several crucial districts, including Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, and others just last week. Following the public release of the list, Harish Chaudhary labeled the appointments “null and void” and mandated their immediate retraction.
This action has incited strong reactions from within the state unit, with leaders aligned with Jitu Patwari decrying it as an “insult” to the elected PCC president. Conversely, the faction led by Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh welcomed the intervention, describing it as a necessary “correction.”
Senior leaders acknowledged that this public controversy has once again highlighted profound factionalism within the Madhya Pradesh Congress, particularly as the party endeavors to regroup ahead of the 2026 local body and 2028 Assembly elections.
The cancelled appointments included various leaders from multiple locations, but the manner in which they were announced without consulting the in-charge appears to have particularly displeased Chaudhary. With the AICC yet to formally respond, this incident has further deepened the trust deficit between the PCC president and the state in-charge.