New Delhi:
The issue of appointing a new Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee(PCC) president was deliberated by Congress president Sonia Gandhi at a meeting with senior party leaders on Saturday.
Gandhi discussed the matter with senior leaders A K Antony, who is in-charge of party affairs in Maharashtra, and her political secretary Ahmed Patel.
The meeting took place in the light of the Maharashtra Congress authorising her to nominate the new PCC chief.Gandhi is engaged in the process of deciding the PCC chiefs for all states following her re-election as party chief recently.
The meeting assumes significance against the backdrop of a controversy involving PCC chief Manikrao Thakre over collection of funds from Congress Ministers in Maharashtra for Sonia's rally in Sewagram on Friday.
The Opposition has attacked the Congress over the issue and demanded a judicial probe into the alleged fund collection by Maharashtra Congress leaders.
The demand was made by Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Eknath Khadse after TV channels showed footage of two senior Congress leaders including Thakre allegedly discussing matters relating to fund collection.
The video showed Thakre speaking with former minister Satish Chaturvedi about fund collection from Congress ministers, including Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, for the rally that addressed by Gandhi.
Chavan has said all the money raised for the rally has been accounted for.
A tussle is on between the supporters and detractors of the Chief Minister over the issue of appointing a new PCC chief. While the Chief Minister supports another term for Thakre, Union minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and some Maharashtra ministers are opposed to his re-election.