BHUBANESWAR: Amid reports that the post of Congress president may see a contest between senior party leader Shashi Tharoor and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) on Tuesday once again urged Rahul Gandhi to lead the party.
“I, on behalf of the OPCC, urge Shri Rahul Gandhi to take up the post of party president as he is the best candidate. For the last two months, I have been pressing for Shri Rahul Gandhi’s leadership,” OPCC president Sarat Pattanayak told mediapersons here.
Stating that Rahul is popular among the people because of his dynamism, Pattanayak said that party workers in Odisha are strongly backing him. “All party leaders and workers are strongly in favour of him as the next president of the All India Congress Committee (AICC),” he said.
Meanwhile, internal bickering of the party came to the fore again on Tuesday with exchange of words between two senior leaders Mohammad Moquim and Tara Prasad Bahinipati. Cuttack-Barabati MLA Moquim said he skipped the meeting at Congress Bhawan attended by senior national leaders Jairam Ramesh and Digvijay Singh on September 18, as he is still waiting for the party’s reply on his response to the show cause notice.
The Congress MLA was issued a show cause for going against the party line and voting for NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu in the Presidential election on July 22. “As I have not received any reply, I have decided not to attend any official meeting of the Congress and confine myself to my constituency ,” he said.
Congress whip in the Assembly Bahinipati, however, said as Moquim is a first time MLA he should not have taken such a stand. “Besides, people will not accept if he speaks against the party,” he said adding that as an educated person, Moquim should know that individuals do not matter in a party like Congress.
The OPCC president said, “As soon as I receive any reply from AICC, I will let it be known.”