Sonia brings in Scindia, Dixit

The opposition Congress party president Sonia Gandhi, who carried out a massive reshuffle of her secretariat on Friday, has introduced more new faces in the party set up.

Young Jyotiraditya Scindia, party lawmaker form Guna in Madhya Pradesh, is new head of the party economic affairs cell while former foreign secretary J.N. Dixit, who formally joined active politics only recently, has been made new chief of foreign affairs cell in place of economist Jairam Ramesh and K. Natwar Singh respectively.

Diplomat turned politician Natwar Singh, who has monopolised the foreign affairs cell for too long continues to be a member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the apex decision making body of the party.

However the unceremonial exit of Ramesh has surprised many, considering he was rated as the brightest expert on economy after Manmohan Singh, leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha.

Suggestions are already being made that Ramesh's growing closeness for the rival Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and his support to the liberalisation policies of the BJP-led federal government may have cost him the post.

Scindia, who was forced into active politics after the tragic death of his famed father Madhavrao Scindia in a plane crash in August 2000, has impressed all and sundry with his oratory powers and depth of understanding of economic matters. He has already become the main speaker of the Congress party on economic matters in the Lok Sabha.

Sonia's Friday reshuffle, in which she added two new general secretaries in R.K. Dhawan and Naval Kishore Sharma, is seen as her attempt to put the party in fighting mode to retain power in four states ruled by it, elections for which are due in October this year, and the fast approaching Lok Sabha polls.

There is a general consensus in the party that she has tried her best to carry all sections of the party along.

This was illustrated best when she clipped the wings of Ambika Soni, by removing her as her Political Secretary and taking Kerala away from her as a punishment for failing to prevent embarrassing rebellion by the Karunakaran faction.

"Sonia has demonstrated by that she wants to break free from the coterie led by Soni that surrounded her and has emerged as a mature and strong leader," a senior party functionary opposed to Soni said.

She has also delivered the message that more than personal loyalty, it is performance that is going to count now, as Kamal Nath too has been punished in a way for failing to win Gujarat since he was the general secretary in-charge for the state.

Delhi has also been taken away from Kamal Nath, which is due for elections in October this year. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has reasons to smile considering Kamal Nath was openly seen promoting her rivals within the party.

On the other hand, Dhawan was rewarded with the general secretary's post for his sensitive handling of the Kerala crisis and ensuring that both official candidates of the party won the recent Rajya Sabha polls.

Likewise, Jammu and Kashmir state unit chief Ghulam Nabi Azad has benefited for turning around the fortunes of the party in the strife torn state during last year's state assembly elections, as he has been made in-charge for several key states.

Mohsina Kidwai is another general secretary who not only escaped being dropped but has gained in strength with new states being given to her for leading the party to success during the recent Himachal Pradesh elections as the general secretary in-charge.