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Sonia drops Reddy and Karunakaran in new CWC

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi and agencies

Sonia Gandhi on Monday reconstituted the Congress Working Committee, the party's apex decision-making body, with 20 members, including Ahmed Patel, who had earlier been removed from the post of AICC treasurer.

In the list of CWC members released on Monday, she also nominated four women -- Ambika Soni, Mohsina Kidwai, Motamma and Sarojini Pulla Reddy.

Prominent among those dropped from the new committee are former CWC members Kotla Vijayabhaskara Reddy, K Karunakaran and Sushil Kumar Shinde.

The other 16 members are: Ahmed Patel, A K Antony, Arjun Singh, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Kamal Nath, L P Sahi, Madhavrao Scindia, Mahabir Prasad, Manmohan Singh, Motilal Vora, former Youth Congress president Mukul Wasnik, K Natwar Singh, Narain Dutt Tiwari, Oscar Fernandes, Pranab Mukherjee and R K Dhawan.

Sushil Kumar Shinde and Prabha Rau were dropped as AICC general secretaries, while Kamal Nath, Mahavir Prasad and Ambika Soni were inducted as general secretaries, and S Jaipal Reddy has been brought in as the chief spokesperson of the party.

Former IYC President Mukul Wasnik, former Andhra minister Sarojini Pulla Reddy, former Union minister L P Shahi and Kamal Nath are among the new members of CWC.

AICC general secretary Motilal Vora, who was holding additional charge as treasurer, has been made treasurer even while relieved of his duties as general secretary.

Senior leader Vasant Sathe has been removed as a member of editorial board of the party mouthpiece Congress Sandesh . Sathe was earlier chairman of the board and his tenure had witnessed several controversies over some contents in the party journal. N D Tiwari is the new chairman.

The reconstitution of the CWC and that of the AICC secretariat was effected by Sonia Gandhi two months after she was elected as party president by a massive margin, defeating the late Jitendra Prasada.

The reconstitution came over a month after newly elected AICC members from various states authorised Gandhi to nominate the entire CWC, the apex policy making body of the party.

In the reconstituted CWC, Gandhi retained most of the members of the erstwhile committee.

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