NEW DELHI: Even as for the first time a Gandhi scion, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has been appointed as Chairperson for a state candidates screening committee since party inception, many in the party have welcomed the decision as best foot forward in Assam to dethrone Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who has been critical of the Gandhi family. However, many speculated that if she is being prepared for a bigger role in future in the organization as she has been a general secretary without any portfolio for almost two years.
Priyanka, who earlier managed the party’s campaigning mostly in Rae Bareli and Amethi, the family bastion, made her debut into politics in 2019 and was appointed General Secretary with incharge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. However, after Jyotiraditya Scindia left the party, she was made incharge for entire Uttar Pradesh.
But now with her appointment as the chairperson of Assam screening committee, Priyanka will now be handling a very delicate job. That includes at looking for the probable candidates names from all the assembly constituencies and then select the names of the candidates, who are capable and then send it to the party’s Central Election Committee (CEC). The last decision on candidates is taken by the CEC but choosing or rejecting the candidates at state level lies with the screening committee.
Why Assam for Priyanka?Â
Party sources stated that Assam is not a new turf for Priyanka since she handled 2021 Assembly polls behind the curtains after she got then Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel appointed as Senior Observer for Assam elections. She campaigned extensively in 2021 assembly polls and also interacted with several women in the tea gardens and from different walks of life.
The source also pointed that besides her electoral experience, the political stature of the Gandhi family and her hold on the organisation will be used extensively to strengthen the party in Assam. Another aspect that party sources indicated for bringing Priyanka Gandhi in Assam in big role is that many of the state leaders in Assam are compromised with Sarma. Thus to break that nexus especially from the presence of a Gandhi scion is important who can act immediately with direct actions from the party leadership.
The party hopes that this way Priyanka will ensure clean and committed candidates’ names getting elevated to CEC for final approval to avoid defections or comprised people getting tickets. The source said that the party has sent the Gandhi scion with a message that anyone who is working against the party interest must immediately organise themselves and work for the party honestly.
Another point that the source mentioned, that Priyanka arrival in Assam also a message that the state unit cannot function at the whims and fancies of any leaders and they all need to work together. Besides Priyanka, the party also named Saharanpur MP Imran Masood, as just a few weeks back, he hogged headlines after he backed her for Prime Ministerial post. When BJP raised his statement, describing this as rift between Gandhi siblings, Masood immediately clarified that he replied only in context of question posed to him pertaining to Priyanka Gandhi.
In a surprise move, the Congress named Baghel, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and former Jharkhand MLA Bandhu Tirkey as the party’s senior observers for the upcoming Assam assembly elections. The party insiders said that this clearly suggests that the move to bring back Baghel and Shivakumar, both trusted leaders of Priyanka to overlook the election strategy in the northeastern state.
But the real question that arises, that the party insiders feel if there is really a chance for Congress in Assam? The source said that the grand old party clearly knows it’s not an easy election and not even a cakewalk to make comeback in Assam as Sarma is holding power very firmly. However, the figures suggest that the picture is not so lopsided. In the 2021 elections, the NDA had won 75 out of 126 seats, while the Congress-led alliance won 50 seats. In terms of vote percentage, the NDA got 43.9 per cent votes and the Congress alliance got 42.3 per cent votes—a marginal difference of 1.6 percent.
