Mumbai, Feb 10 (IANS): In a damage-control move, AICC's Maharashtra in-charge H.K. Patil will come for a two-day visit to Mumbai on Sunday and attempt to defuse the ongoing crisis boiling over in Maharashtra Congress, officials said here on Friday.

Patil is expected to hold separate meetings with state President Nana Patole and senior leader Balasaheb Thorat - who recently quit as the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader - besides other top leaders to gauge the political situation first-hand.

The political upheavals rocked the state Congress ahead of the MLC elections in January, specifically linked with the Nashik Graduates Constituency, where the official party nominee, Sudhir Tambe, suddenly stepped down in favour of his son Satyajeet Tambe.

As the party tried to grapple with the situation, Satyajeet Tambe - a nephew of Thorat - won the seat as an Independent, trouncing Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) nominee Shubhangi Patil.

The Congress also got engaged in a fresh war of words with its MVA ally, Shiv Sena (UBT), after the latter blamed Patole's resignation as Speaker two years ago for triggering the crisis in the MVA which led to its collapse in June 2022.

Besides the Sena (UBT), even some Congressmen like Vijay Wadettiwar have pointed fingers at Patole for his 'hasty' decision to quit as Speaker following his appointment as state party President, but the state unit has chucked the allegations to rally behind Patole.

Patil will take a review of the party's 'Hath Se Hath Jodo' campaign in meetings with Patole and Mumbai unit President Bhai Jagtap.

The Congress top brass is said to be in touch with prominent state leaders such as ex-CMs Sushilkumar Shinde, Ashok Chavan, Prithviraj Chavan, several ex-ministers and other party veterans.

The AICC has taken the current crisis seriously in view of the upcoming civic elections in Maharashtra, besides the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls scheduled next year, and is keen to resolve it amicably, said a senior Congress leader.