3 Ahir leaders in race for state chief; Hooda in line for CLP leader

Nearly a year after dragging its feet on deciding the state chief and the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader, the general secretary incharge of the party, BK Hariprasad, is learnt to have submitted his “recommendations” for the two positions to the party top brass.

Sources said while a former CM, Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s name had been recommended for the CLP leader, three Ahir leaders were in the race for the state chief.

According to information, the names of former ministers Capt Ajay Yadav and Rao Narender Singh and former MLA Rao Dan Singh have been submitted for the party high command’s consideration.

With the ruling BJP cashed in on the OBC card by making CM Nayab Singh Saini as the face of the campaign in the Assembly elections last year, the sources said the Congress think tank, too, seemed to be willing to depart from its traditional formula of keeping the top two positions between a Jat and a Scheduled Caste leader.

Given the recommendation, the Congress seems to be keen on playing the OBC card to counter the BJP by announcing an Ahir (also an OBC) as the state chief.

While these recommendations were made by Hariprasad nearly a month back, the party leadership had taken up the matter now, the sources said.

The Congress leadership had called a meeting in Delhi. It is learnt that Hooda, Congress MPs Kumari Selja and Randeep Surjewala and Rao Narender, among others, attended the meeting to arrive at a consensus on both positions.

The appointments could be made “very soon” and the delay was, essentially, on account of the differences with the factions led by Hooda and his rivals Selja and Surjewala.