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Mukherjee accused of abetting
'anti-Sonia conspiracy'

Senior Congress leaders attacked pradesh committee chief Pranab Mukherjee, for his alleged involvement in abetting a conspiracy against All India Congress Committee president Sonia Gandhi.

Many PCC functionaries Saturday accused Mukherjee of violating the organisational electoral process to build up a coterie.

Mukherjee supporters on Friday claimed their leader had been elected PCC president uncontested. This incited Sonia loyalists, who questioned the announcement's legitimacy.

PCC vice-president Saugata Roy told rediff.com, " How can he announce his election when the list of newly elected PCC members has not been published? We know what Mukherjee is up to. Pranab babu has arbitarily inducted PCC members to vote against Sonia for elections to the post of AICC chief. Such elections, which lack transparency, do not serve any purpose. Most newly inducted PCC members are those who have been defying the party high command."

Though the delegate list has yet to be made public, sources said that among the new faces are Moghal and Shahabuddin Haider.

While Moghal's role in orchestrating the Trinamul-Bharatiya Janata Party combine's victory in Garden Reach during the Calcutta civic polls is known, Shahabuddin's credentials as a true Congressman have often been under scrutiny.

In 1986, when Mukherjee parted ways with the Congress to form the Rashtriya Congress, Shahabuddin accompanied him.

On Friday, state Youth Congress chief and Mukherjee critic Amitabha Mukherjee resigned as district returning officer.

Though he this had anything to do with factionalism, party insiders view this as a protest against the Mukherjee camp's move to sideline his detractors.

"There is no factionalism in the Congress. I have resigned because as Youth Congress chief I could not have done justice to my new assignment," Chakraborty told rediff.com.

Several senior PCC functionaries, including Samir Roy, Sukendu Ray and Saugata Roy have written to Ram Niwas Mirdha, chairman of the Congress party's central election authority, alleging 'rampant violation' of the electoral process in West Bengal.

They accused AICC-appointed chief returning officer for Bengal Nagendra Jha of being hand in glove with the Mukherjee camp.

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