Senior leaders claim crisis resolved after talks with Rahul Gandhi, but Borah says decision still pending
Guwahati: Political uncertainty gripped the Indian National Congress in Assam on Monday after former state unit president Bhupen Kumar Borah resigned from the party, triggering conflicting claims over whether he had withdrawn the decision and exposing fresh strains within the organisation ahead of the Assembly elections.
Assam Congress in-charge Bhanwar Jitendra Singh asserted that Borah had agreed to stay after talks with the leadership. “I thank Bhupen Borah for taking back his resignation. He is a very senior leader of ours. Sometimes there are disagreements within the family. Our party is democratic,” Singh said, a
Singh further added that the Congress president had not accepted the resignation and that senior leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, held detailed discussions with him. He even indicated that Borah would handle the party’s campaign in the future.
However, Borah contradicted those claims, stating he had not formally withdrawn his resignation and would decide only after taking time to reflect, further deepening the confusion within the ranks.
State Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, who visited Borah’s residence in Guwahati, described him as a key asset and one of the party’s strongest leaders. He said nearly three hours of discussions were held to address Borah’s concerns. “If any wrong was done, I apologise to him as a brother,” Gogoi said, adding that Rahul Gandhi also personally spoke with Borah to persuade him to continue with the party.
Earlier in the day, Borah had sent his resignation letter to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, alleging that he was being ignored and not given due importance within the state unit.
Bhupen Borah’s abrupt move, followed by the leadership’s claim of reconciliation and his own refusal to confirm it, has exposed visible cracks within the party organisation at a crucial pre-election moment.
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