NEW DELHI: After the central leadership of Congress assessed the feedback from respective leaders of several states where the party had performed poorly in the recent Lok Sabha elections, general secretary and in-charge of the election-bound state of Jharkhand, Ghulam Ahmed Mir was adjudged to be the “worst” among the lot, claim sources in the party. To keep him company in this category is the Pradesh Congress Committee president, Rajesh Thakur. This, sources claim is primarily because of poor ticket distribution by the duo in the Lok Sabha elections.
Most leaders in the AICC indicate that Thakur’s replacement is certain. And now there is a buzz that even Mir might be replaced. More than a dozen leaders The Sunday Guardian talked to alleged that the bonhomie between Rajesh Thakur and Ghulam Ahmed Mir has caused serious damage to the party in the state as they have tried to help each other and therefore misled the high command as well as the state cadre. A party insider privy to the developments said, “If there is a humiliating feedback the high command has received about someone, it is Ghulam Ahmed Mir. There are a lot of allegations against him.”
A senior Congress leader said, “Leaders are worried that if the duo continue to dominate the ticket distribution for the Jharkhand Assembly elections, the Congress-JMM alliance could lose a winning battle, because the Congress’ interests may not be paramount in that case.”
Sources allege that things started looking uncertain for Mir, when Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren met Sonia Gandhi and conveyed to her that Mir disturbed the balance of the alliance by giving importance to his own interests rather than pursuing the interests of the alliance during the Lok Sabha elections.
Moreover, Mir had questioned the credibility of several candidates and allegedly belittled them for not being able to fund their own campaigns adequately. It was to show, according to some Congress leaders, that he had the power to control the candidates as he controlled the “feedback system” of the state—feedback reaches the high command through him.
Such a projection was also to impress upon the candidates that they should fall in line as they have got tickets to contest the elections with his blessings. Consequently, those senior leaders who felt Mir’s administrative actions were not to the point, were distanced from the party affairs and further excommunicated by him. A leader in the know alleged that Mir is practising “infantile” power politics on such a big stage believing that this is also J&K (where politicians have less exposure). Mir is from Jammu and Kashmir.
At the core of this attitude is believed to be his closeness with the powerful organisation general secretary, K.C. Venugopal.
A few candidates The Sunday Guardian talked to, unhappily expressed that the Jharkhand leadership did not help them financially as much as was required in the Lok Sabha elections.
According to a senior Congress leader in Kashmir, when Mir was appointed as the Minister of State (MoS) Tourism, he used to invite high profile people on government expenditure and build personal relations. This subsequently helped him spotlight his name among national politicians. It also increased his acceptance level among politicians at the centre. The leader added, “With his hands on the tourism ministry of Jammu and Kashmir, he would develop his political network rather than serve the state.”
An ex legislator in Kashmir region said, “He was the president of J&K unit for around 7 years, this period saw the exodus of good leaders just because of his selfish politics. It is beyond understanding that despite his poor track record he was made an AICC general secretary and Jharkhand in-charge.” Mir also comes with some baggage. He was charged in a case in Kashmir with his powerful friends. Mir was picked up from Jammu & Kashmir House in Chanakyapuri in New Delhi in 2006 (when PDP-Congress alliance helmed the government) after being booked under Section 5 of the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act. However, later in 2012 Mir and the others were acquitted as the witnesses turned hostile.
Sources allege that Mir “has always tried to misuse power. Also he will do anything to please his bosses. His only USP is that he is a yes man. He doesn’t have an independent mind.”
Sources close to Mir, however, claim that Mir’s detractors are targeting him by spreading such canard against him.