New Delhi, August 18
Five Union ministers, who have additional responsibilities in the Congress organisation, are likely to make way for new incumbents in the long-awaited AICC reshuffle and work reallocation expected to be announced later this month.

With the exception of Defence Minister AK Antony, who will retain his charge of poll-bound Maharshtra, the other ministers - Prithviraj Chavan, Veerappa Moily, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mukul Wasnik and V Narayanswami - are expected to be replaced, as Congress president Sonia Gandhi is said to be serious about following the “one man, one post” formula.

The AICC rejig and work reallocation has been due since the UPA came back to power in May and five of its senior party functionaries were inducted into the Union council of ministers. However, it has become imperative to put a new team in place as the party is preparing for Assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana, Jharkhand and Arunachal Pradesh later this year.

Chavan, who has his hands full with five ministries, is currently AICC general secretary in charge of Haryana. Since there are plans to advance Assembly polls in this state, Sonia Gandhi is of the view that the party needs a full-time person for this job, although Chavan held dual positions in the party and the government even before the elections. Minister for Health, Gulam Nabi Azad, in charge of Orissa and Tamil Nadu, also needs to focus on the efforts to control the spread of swine flu.

Wasnik, who has responsibility for Rajasthan and Delhi, and Moily, who has charge of Assam and Andhra Pradesh, are also to be replaced as they have been inducted as Cabinet ministers. Oscar Fernandes and Shakeel Ahmed ,who were ministers in the last UPA government, are tipped to get party responsibilities while the strength of AICC general secretaries may be raised from the present nine to 12.

Congress sources said Antony would continue to look after Maharashtra affairs as the party president feels they need a senior leader like him to undertake the ticklish exercise of seat-sharing discussions with Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). It promises to be a long haul as there are sections in the Congress who are of the view that the party should drive a hard bargain with the NCP on the basis of its improved performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

While Maharashtra and Haryana are likely to go to polls after Diwali in October, the Jharkhand elections may be held separately in November because of the security arrangements required there on account of the Naxal violence.

The Cabinet reshuffle for the induction of Trinamool Congress nominee Sudip Bandhopadhya is likely to take place only after the Assembly poll, UPA sources disclosed. The ruling combine wants to induct a Muslim face for which it has identified Rajya Sabha chairman K Rahman Khan.