The Congress party has appointed Ganesh Godiyal, a 59-year-old former MLA, as the new Uttarakhand chief, replacing Karan Mahara. Mahara's term had ended in April 2025, but he continued on extension until now. The leadership reshuffle was announced with the 2027 Assembly elections in mind. Pritam Singh, a former state Congress chief and current MLA from Chakrata, will head the campaign committee, while former BJP minister Harak Singh Rawat becomes chairman of the election management committee. Mahara, a two-time MLA from Ranikhet who took charge in 2022, has been made a special invitee to the Congress Working Committee. The new lineup aims to balance regional and caste representation across Uttarakhand's Garhwal and Kumaon regions. Notably, former chief minister Harish Rawat's influence has been curtailed in these appointments.
Leadership Changes and Regional Balance
The new appointments ensure representation from key caste groups across both Garhwal and Kumaon regions. Godiyal, a Brahmin from Garhwal, had previously served as state chief in 2021 but lost his Srinagar seat twice consecutively in 2017 and 2022 to BJP's Dhan Singh Rawat. Pritam Singh is a Rajput from Dehradun representing the Jaunsar Bawar region with Scheduled Tribe status. The earlier leadership was criticized for favoring Kumaon leaders, with Mahara, Deputy CLP leader Bhuwan Chandra Kapri, and CLP Yashpal Arya all from that region. Harak Singh Rawat's appointment as election management committee chairman may prove controversial due to ongoing CBI and Enforcement Directorate investigations into forest tree felling and illegal construction cases in Corbett Tiger Reserve.
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