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Ahead of the proposed Cabinet reshuffle, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) will meet here on Tuesday to chalk out the party’s strategy to counter the Opposition’s campaigns against the UPA Government.
The meeting will be chaired by party President Sonia Gandhi who held various meetings with senior Ministers and party men on Monday.
Apart from C.P. Joshi, who has recently been given additional charge of Railways, she met Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad. Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, senior leader of the party in the State, Narayan Rane, and the party’s in-charge for Maharashtra Mohan Prakash also met Sonia Gandhi in the wake of discussions on Cabinet reshuffle.
The CWC, sources said, will endorse the recent decisions taken by the UPA Government, including foreign direct investment in retail and hike in diesel prices.
Telangana tangle
The Telangana Rashtra Samiti leader K. Chandrashekhara Rao is camping here and is likely to meet the Congress chief on Tuesday or Wednesday. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy is also expected to reach the Capital this week.
The Andhra Pradesh Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan has already met Sonia Gandhi, Shinde and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram to discuss the political situation in the State.
The Congress is yet to decide on Rao’s offer of merging his party with the Congress if formation of a separate Telangana State was announced. The Congress high command is also trying to link the crisis in the State with the Cabinet reshuffle.
Debate on FDI
Meanwhile, the Congress said it was ready for a debate in Parliament on FDI in retail. Party spokesperson Manish Tewari however, said the offer from the Congress for a debate would not be accepted by the Opposition.
He said the party was confident of winning the confidence of supporters such as Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party on the issue.
The Trinamool Congress has demanded a discussion entailing voting on FDI retail in Parliament. The party’s chief Mamata Banerjee plans to hold a dharna in front of Parliament on October 1, against FDI in retail.
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