Rao is Chanda city Congress chief, ex-MLA Dhote to again lead rural district

Chandrapur: Congress has appointed Shiva Rao as the new president of the Chandrapur City Congress Committee, while former MLA Subhash Dhote was reappointed as president of the Chandrapur Rural District Congress Committee.The appointments come at a politically sensitive time for the party in Chandrapur. Congress had recently come close to securing the mayor's post in the Chandrapur Municipal Corporation, but internal factionalism in the camps led by MP Pratibha Dhanorkar and senior Congress leader and Legislature Party Leader in Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar, led to the party losing the opportunity.Outgoing city district president Santosh Lahamage was considered a supporter of Dhanorkar, while Shiva Rao is regarded as close to Wadettiwar. Meanwhile, the decision to retain MLA Dhote as the rural district president is being seen as an attempt by Congress to strengthen its organisational structure and balance internal equations ahead of upcoming political challenges in the district.