Agartala: The appointment of new Tripura Pradesh Congress president has evoked mixed reaction in party rank and file, with a section of senior party members opining to have no impact on the party functioning others considering it to gain anti-Left wave among the commoners.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) has appointed veteran tribal leader and incumbent legislator Diba Chandra Hrankhawl as the new President of Tripura Pradesh Congress Friday night following dissidence in the party against outgoing party Chief Sudip Roy Barman.
Hrangkhawl, who succeed Sudip Roy Burman, is the second tribal leader who will lead the Congress in Tripura after Manmohan Debbarma who was the Congress state unit chief in 1971-72.
AICC also created a post of Working President and appointed incumbent General Secretary and MLA Ashis Kumar Saha. Party supremo Sonia Gandhi reconstituted the party state unit and brought two new faces in leadership.
This is also for the first time AICC has tried to win the heart of tribal voters by selecting Diba Chandra as the president while keeping faith on young blood by giving responsibility to Saha.
Barman had tendered his resignation from the post of party president following poll debacle in recently concluded assembly elections where Congress secured only 10 seats in 60 members house.
However, outgoing President Barman welcomed the decision of AICC and stated, “This is a timely and efficient decision to strengthen the fight against misrule of Left front. The Tribal are mostly deprived in left regime and selection of Hrankhawl would definitely yield a better result in future and I will work as a worker.”
However, the dissident faction of the party opined putting Hrankhawl and Saha, who happened to be the close associates of Barman, at the top of the party would have no impact.
Though Hrankhawl is an honest and dedicated Congress worker, yet he is solely guided by Barman and as a result, change in party activities is still a distant dream.
Moreover, appointing Saha into Working President post will prevent him to function unitedly with all, claimed former minister and leader of the opposition Jawhar Saha.
He also alleged due to Roy Barman, Congress lost the assembly election and more than 38,000 workers left the party in past three months. And by changing the leadership, he has also ensured his domination in the PCC.
Meanwhile, leader of the opposition, Ratan Lal Nath welcomed the decision of AICC and believed that the Congress would be able to strengthen it’s base in tribal areas under the leadership of Hrankhawl and asserted, “We all will support him to work efficiently to bring change in Left rule in Tripura.”
The main opposition Congress had suffered a humiliating defeat, managing only 10 seats in the 60-member house in the Feb 14 polls.
The Congress’s poll partners Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura and National Conference of Tripura drew blanks, contesting 10 seats and one seat, respectively.
The Left Front comprising Communist Party of India-Marxist (49) and Communist Party of India (one) registered a resounding victory in the polls, winning 50 seats. (Agencies)