Harshvardhan Sapkal to take charge as Maharashtra Congress chief on Tuesday

Harshwardhan Sapkal, who hails from Buldhana district, was appointed chief of the party's state unit last week

Harshvardhan Sapkal will take charge as the new Maharashtra Congress chief on Tuesday in the presence of senior leaders, a party functionary said, reported the PTI.

He will take charge at an event organised at Birla Matoshri Auditorium, a party statement issued in Mumbai on Monday said.

Harshwardhan Sapkal, who hails from Buldhana district, was appointed chief of the party's state unit last week after Nana Patole completed his four-year tenure.

Sapkal takes over at a time when the Congress is on a low following its disastrous performance in the November assembly polls, in which it would win just 16 seats in the 288-member assembly.

It had contested 101 seats in alliance with the Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP).

His immediate focus would be the civic polls, which are due in several cities of Maharashtra since early 2022. Local body polls are likely to be held this year.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge had last week on Thursday appointed Harshwardhan Sapkal as the new chief of the party's Maharashtra unit with immediate effect, as per the PTI.

He will be replacing former Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.

The Congress president also approved the appointment of Vijay Namdevrao Wadettiwar as the leader of the Congress Legislative Party in Maharashtra with immediate effect.

Harshwardhan Sapkal was a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from 2014 to 2019, representing the Buldhana Assembly Constituency in Maharashtra.

"The Congress President has appointed Harshwardhan Sapkal as the president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee with immediate effect. The party appreciates the contributions of the outgoing president Nana Patole," a statement from All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal said, according to the PTI.

Nana Patole had tendered his resignation after the party's rout in the Maharashtra Assembly Elections where the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) comprising of the Congress, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP SP) led by Sharad Pawar failed to form its government and lost badly to the ruling BJP-Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP's Mahayuti alliance of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). 

(with PTI inputs)

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