Guwahati, June 3: Lok Sabha MP from Assam, Gaurav Gogoi took charge as the president of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) during a formal ceremony at the party’s state headquarters here on Tuesday.
Addressing mediapersons at Rajiv Bhawan after assuming office as the head of the principal Opposition party in the state, Gogoi pledged to work together with the party leaders for Assam’s bright future, while reaffirming his commitment to the party’s core values of equality and inclusiveness.
“We will do our best to form a Congress government in Assam in the coming days. I have taken over the responsibility as APCC president from former APCC president Bhupen Kumar Borah today. I am confident that all of us will work together for Assam’s bright future,” he said.
Senior Congress leaders comprising AICC general secretary Jitendra Singh Alwar; Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain; and Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Assembly, Debabrata Saikia, among others were present when outgoing APCC chief Bhupen Kumar Borah handed over the responsibility and charge of the party’s state unit to Gogoi.
Earlier in the day, the Congress leader paid a visit to the Kamakhya Temple here, seeking blessings for his new role ahead of the all-important Assembly elections in the state next year.
The All-India Congress Committee (AICC) had on May 26 announced the appointment of Gogoi as the APCC president replacing Bhupen Kumar Borah, who has been entrusted with the role of chairperson of the APCC Campaign Committee.
Gogoi’s appointment as the state party chief comes at a critical stage, just months away from the Assembly elections, and at a time when he and his wife are being probed over allegations of links with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The AICC had also appointed three working presidents of APCC – Jakir Hussain Sikdar, Roselina Tirkey and Pradip Sarkar. Notably, Tirkey has been relieved of her current responsibilities as AICC secretary.
Besides, in a move to steer the party’s electoral preparations in the state, the AICC president had approved the proposal for the appointment of chairpersons of the campaign committee, coordination committee, manifesto committee, publicity committee and election management committee of the APCC.
Senior leader Debabrata Saikia was appointed chairperson of the APCC Coordination Committee; Nagaon MP Pradyut Bordoloi as chairperson of the APCC Manifesto Committee; Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain as chairperson of the APCC Publicity Committee while senior party leader Ripun Bora was appointed chairperson of the APCC Election Management Committee.
