BHUBANESWAR: The newly-appointed president of Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) Bhakta Charan Das has lifted suspension and expulsion of all party leaders.
While calling upon leaders who had quit the Congress to come back, the OPCC president also invited leaders of other political parties who have faith in the principles and ideology of Congress to join the party.
The announcement of the OPCC president has come ahead of the ‘Sankalpa Padayatra’ from Bhubaneswar to Puri on February 18. Das has formed a 16-member committee, headed by former MLA Debasis Pattnaik, to ensure the rally’s success.
He said the rally will be held as part of efforts to reconnect with old party leaders and workers and strengthen its grassroots presence. “My aim is to strengthen the Congress party and win the hearts and minds of the people,” he said.
Party sources said that the blanket decision to lift suspension and expulsion will be applicable to around 60 leaders across the state. Prominent among them are former minister Suresh Kumar Routray and former OPCC secretary Prakash Mishra.
Meanwhile, Ajay Kumar Lallu, a former president of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee, has been appointed the Odisha in-charge of the party. Lallu will replace Ajoy Kumar as the party in-charge for Odisha. Besides, Koraput MP Saptagiri Ulaka has been made the in-charge of four states of Manipur, Sikkim, Tripura and Nagaland.