Sonia Gandhi sets up panel to discuss national security, economic and foreign affairs, Manmohan Singh to head all three panels

Congress president Sonia Gandhi has set up three separate committees for discussing policy issues related to economic affairs, foreign affairs and national security, with former prime minister Manmohan Singh part of all the three panels.

While former finance minister P Chidambaram, and party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Digvijaya Singh will be part of the economic affairs committee, Jairam Ramesh will be its convener.

The committee on foreign affairs will have Anand Sharma, Shashi Tharoor, Salman Khurshid and Saptagiri Ulaka. Khurshid will be the convener of the panel.

The committee on national security will have leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, party leaders Veerappa Moily, Vincent H Pala and V Vaithilingam, with Pala as its convener.

"The Congress president has constituted three committees to consider and discuss issues and policies related to the subjects of economic affairs, foreign affairs and national security," an official statement from AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said.

Incidentally, among those nominated in the committees include senior party leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Veerappa Moily and Shashi Tharoor, who were part of the 23 letter-writers seeking an organisational overhaul of the Congress.

While Sharma is the chairman of the AICC foreign affairs department, Shashi Tharoor heads the party's Professional Congress. SKC AAR