Rahul arrives in Shimla on private visit; focus shifts to HPCC recast
Education Minister Rohit Thakur, Theog MLA Kuldeep Rathore head for New Delhi
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reached Shimla on a private visit this afternoon. He was received by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Health Minster Dhani Ram Shandil and Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Vikramaditya Singh. “Rahul Gandhi headed to Priyanka Gandhi’s house immediately after reaching Shimla. He’s on a private visit and will stay at Chharabra,” said a Congress leader. Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are already in Shimla. They had come for the unveiling of the statue of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.
Meanwhile, the focus in the state Congress has shifted back to the reconstitution of the dissolved Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee and the finalization of the name of the new HPCC president. The speculation about the appointment of a new HPCC president started afresh, as Education Minister Rohit Thakur and Theog MLA Kuldeep Rathore, who are among the front-runners for the post, heading for New Delhi after the unveiling of Virbhadra Singh’s statue on Monday.
Rohit Thakur, however, said that he had rushed to New Delhi to express gratitude to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for granting two Kendriya Vidyalayas to the state, and seek the extension in deadline for completing the formalities for these institutions. “As for the appointment of a new HPCC president is concerned, the groundwork has been completed and the matter is under consideration at the highest level. The top leadership will take the final call,” he added.
Rohit Thakur has already made it clear that he is ready to take over as the HPCC president if asked by the party high command. Meanwhile, sources close to Rathore said that he had gone to New Delhi to submit a report he had prepared as an AICC observer in Uttarakhand.
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