Charges of favouritism surface in Odisha Congress

Bhubaneswar: Resentment is brewing within Congress leaders in the State after exclusion of a few heavyweights from the new list of members of All India Congress Committee (AICC) and this is evident from the fact that a few from the party continue to remain vocal (since then) against their leaders in Odisha and New Delhi.

Senior leaders including Ananta Sethy and legislators Tara Prasad Bahinipati, Jogesh Singh and Prafulla Majhi were dropped from the fresh list of AICC members that was released on March 16.

Alleging irregularities in selection of AICC members, Tara Prasad Bahinipati today said that people who were close to the party's Odisha chief have found a place in the AICC list but those who have been dedicatedly working for the party were left out.

"I have also heard that some persons who are in BJP and are yet to join Congress, have also been added to the AICC list," Bahinipati said, adding that the party's national president Rahul Gandhi was authorised to select the AICC members however, the present State unit's chief took full advantage of it.

While factional feud in the State unit has been observed every now and then, it has grown bitter since the party's humiliating defeat in the Bijepur bypoll.

Some Congress MLAs have already declared that they will not contest the upcoming elections if Prasad Harichandan continues to be at the helm of affairs of the State unit.