This is the latest Congress move to woo Muslims in UP. Last week, the party high command appointed 74-year-old Maulana Ansar Shah Kashmiri of Deoband’s Darul Uloom as senior vice-president of the UP Congress. Kashmiri, who headed the education department at Deoband in Saharanpur, is a dyed-in-the-wool Congressman. On assuming charge, he was quick to pin blame on Narasimha Rao for the state that the party finds itself in UP. "Muslims blamed his government for the demolition of the Babri Masjid and Rao gave no indication that the Centre wasn’t involved. But things have changed now. I’ll work towards reviving the party." The Congress is in desperate need of all the help the Maulana can give.