From Our Correspondent
Guwahati: Former Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was on Thursday elected as the president of regional Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), the main opposition party in Assam, defeating his only rival and party legislator Padma Hazarika by 37 votes in an intra-party election where 300 out of the total 395 party executive members cast their votes.
Election of Mahanta and a new central executive committee was crucial for the AGP which is desperately looking forward for a strong and able leader to lead it at this juncture when the party was passing through a lean patch.
It will be Mahanta’s third term as the president of the AGP which was formed after the culmination of six years long Assam Agitation led by Mahanta as the then president of All Assam Students Union (AASU) during 1979-85. He was president of the party during 1985-1990 and 1995-2001.
Getting elected as the president of the party, Mahanta said, “He will try to lead the party in a united way taking all the leaders into confidence. He said he has been blessed on many occasions by the people of Assam since he was a student leader and feels responsible for the masses of the state.” The AGP on Thursday passed through hardest time in its history after its defeat to Congress in 2001 Assembly election in Assam. Since then Congress led by Tarun Gogoi has been in power in the state winning three consecutive Assembly polls since 2001.
The AGP ruled Assam during 1985-90 and 1996-2001 and Mahanta was the chief minister during both the reigns of the party. After the defeat of the party at the hands of Congress in 2001, Mahanta was forced out of the party’s top post compelling him to float a new political party called AGP (Progressive).
He contested 2006 Assembly polls as AGP(Progressive) leader and both AGP and the AGP(P) were thrashed by Congress in 2006 polls. Both the faction later patched up before 2011 Assembly election to put up a joint fight against Congress but in vain. Being the newly-elected leader of the regional party whose morale has hit the ebb because of repeated defeat in the last three Assembly polls, Mahanta face an herculean task to revamp the party and enthuse the party workers.