Prayagraj: Veteran Congress leader Shekhar Bahuguna was included in the UP Congress Party’s Political Affairs Committee. The list issued by the national general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal also included the names of Raj Babbar, Supriya Srinate, Imran Pratapgarhi, Imran Kidwai, Nadeem Javed, Yogesh Dixit and Manoj Tyagi. In addition to this, the Congress leadership appointed 21 district and city chiefs for effective implementation of the party’s campaign in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Prayagraj district owes a lot to Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna in terms of development and his ability to take all the communities together. Yeh Bahugunaji ki dharti hai (This is Bahugunajis territory) and no party can ignore him and frequently invoke his name to gain brownie points over political rivals. I remember when people used to just write their request on a post card to Bahugunaji in Delhi (Bahuguna also held various portfolios at Centre) and he would get the job done,” said a veteran political analyst while commenting on the move by Grand Old Party to resurrect itself and rise like a Phoenix from the ashes in Uttar Pradesh. 

“The man, who had shared a hot-and-cold relationship with Congress top leadership during the later part of his political career in the 1970s and 1980s, is credited with giving Prayagraj several things, including canals with lift pumps for irrigation and also promoting IFFCO, the name associated with fertiliser production. Also, he was among the last leaders who managed to take all sections of the society together with him,” he stated prior to signing off.  Meanwhile, according to insiders the move is aimed to reclaim Bahuguna legacy at a time, when rumours are rife and churning gossip mills suggest that BJP may drop existing Prayagraj MP Dr. Joshi.