BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) is likely to have an elected president next time as the high command has decided to fill up all posts across the nation through organisational polls.
The decision was taken at a meeting of State presidents and senior leaders presided over by All-India Congress Committee (AICC) vice-president Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on Tuesday. OPCC president Jaydev Jena has also convened a meeting of senior leaders and office-bearers on Saturday to discuss membership drive and organisational polls.
Election to the post of OPCC president and other office-bearers will be over by June next year. Membership drive for Odisha will be completed by March 31.
Organisational polls will start from booth level in the first phase. Block and district level polls will follow before the State level election.
Congress sources said this time there will be no unanimous choice in the name of election for the OPCC president’s post and the high command will not thrust its choice on the party.
The demand for overhauling the State leadership, including the OPCC president, gained ground following the party’s humiliating defeat in the by-poll to the Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat.
Several senior leaders have written letters to party president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi demanding that the OPCC president should be changed.
Democratic decision