New Delhi: In a significant organisational move, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has constituted screening committees for the upcoming assembly elections in five regions: Assam, Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the party’s general secretary and Wayanad MP, has been entrusted with the crucial responsibility of chairing the panel for Assam.
With immediate effect, the committees will shortlist candidates and consult with state units before receiving final approval from the Central Election Committee. Announced by Organisation General Secretary K C Venugopal, this step signals Congress’ intensified preparations for the polls expected later this year.
For Assam, Priyanka’s panel includes Lok Sabha MPs Saptagiri Shankar Ulaka and Imran Masood, alongside Dr Sirivella Prasad. In Kerala, veteran leader Madhusudan Mistry heads the committee with members Syed Naseer Hussain, Neeraj Dangi, and Abhishek Dutt.
BK Hariprasad leads West Bengal’s panel, which includes Dr Mohammad Javed, Mamta Devi, and BP Singh. TS Singh Deo, a former Chhattisgarh minister, chairs the joint committee for Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, with assistance from Yashomati Thakur, GC Chandrasekhar, and Anil Kumar Yadav.
State in-charges, PCC presidents, and CLP leaders will serve as ex-officio members. With Priyanka’s dynamic presence on Assam’s panel, the party aims to bolster its strategy in the Northeast amid stiff competition.