BHUBANESWAR: Following the footsteps of BJP and BJD, the State unit of Congress has decided to launch a membership drive to revitalise the party at the grassroots level. The membership drive, likely to be undertaken this month, aims at activating the party organisation ahead of the civic body polls to be held early next year.
Sources in the party said schedule of the membership drive will be finalised after the arrival of the president of Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Niranjan Patnaik who is on a foreign visit. Patnaik is expected to reach Odisha next week. As all the committees of OPCC have been dissolved and its office-bearers, except the president and two working presidents, dismissed, a small panel is likely to be constituted to take up the membership drive.
The organisation of the State Congress has become dormant following the dismal performance of the party in 2019 Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Though Patnaik had resigned soon after the party’s poll debacle, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) recently rejected his resignation and asked him to continue in his post.
Two working presidents Pradip Majhi and Chiranjib Biswal will also continue in their posts. However, dissolution of all the committees and dismissal of the office-bearers have sparked off resentment among the leaders. Most of the leaders now remain indifferent to party activities as they feel that without a complete overhauling of the organisation, it will be difficult for the Congress to revive itself as it has been out of power for the last 19 years.
Meanwhile, the BJP and BJD have already launched their membership drive in Odisha. A meeting of senior leaders of BJP is scheduled on September 5 to finalise the schedule of organisational polls to elect a new State president by the year-end.
The BJD launched its membership drive from September 2 with an aim to double the number of members to one crore by October 31.