Madhya Pradesh Cong. unit to be dissolved

From Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, AUG 17. The Congress high command today decided to dissolve the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) even as it allowed the PCC chief, Mr. Radha Krishan Malviya, to continue in his position. The decision to dissolve the State-unit comes in the wake of the shooting incident, in which Mr. Manak Agarwal, a general secretary of the party, was shot and injured by Mr. Inder Prajapat, another general secretary.

The shooting incident had created a controversy with Mr. Manak Agarwal openly accusing the PCC chief of instigating Mr. Prajapat to attack him. A section of the party used the incident to demand the sacking of Mr. Malviya as PCC chief. The Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, deputed two CWC members Mr. Oscar Fernandes and Mr. L.P. Sahi to visit Bhopal and conduct a detailed probe.

Mr. Fernandes and Mr. Sahi found little basis in the allegations made by Mr. Agarwal and gave a clean chit to Mr. Malviya in their report submitted to the AICC general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh, Ms. Mohsina Kidwai. The two central observers, however, did find substance in the allegations that a large number of people with criminal antecendants were members of the PCC and recommended overhauling of the present set-up in a bid to weed out such elements from the party.

Mr. Malviya also had the unstinted support of the State Chief Minister, Mr. Digvijay Singh, which appears to have weighed heavily in his favor.

Briefing newspersons today, party spokesperson, Mr. Anand Sharma, said the decision to dissolve the State-unit had been taken on the recommendations of the two-member team sent by the Congress president. Mr. Sharma also clarified that there was no direct or indirect accusation against Mr. Radha Krishan Malviya.

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