Congress President Sitaram Kesri yesterday made peace with another potential dissident among the powerful members of the Congress Working Committee. He appointed Ghulam Nabi Azad as the convenor of a committee to celebrate the golden jubilee of Indias independence.
Azad, once a Kesri confidant, fell out with his boss some months ago. He had fought and convincingly won the CWC elections in Calcutta even though he was not on Kesris panel of favourites. Kesri has sought peace with other potential enemies while he concentrates on marginalising party Vice-president Jitendra Prasada, who floated lists of CWC candidates different from the one Kesri had approved. For instance, he has made peace with Arjun Singh, who is considered close to Sonia Gandhi.
Kesri will chair the 47-member committee which Azad is to convene. There are to be five sub-committees at the national level, each headed by a chairman. Among the 17 CWC members are Pranab Mukherjee, Sharad Pawar, A K Antony, Arjun Singh, Madhavrao Scindia and JB Patnaik. Plus, Azad said state committees would be formed soon. The committee, which is to comprise senior Congress leaders, former ministers, freedom fighters and their relatives (such as Bhagat Singhs brother and Sukhdevs sister), will oversee the celebrations.