Who will now lead AGP?

May 25 , 2011

GUWAHATI : Stung by the recent Assembly poll debacle, the AGP is at its all-time low since its inception in 1985. The party has to hold its general council this year in accordance with the guidelines set by the Election Commission (EC) of India. As if to cap it all, the party is haunted by the question: Who will lead the party from the front in these days of crisis? Party president Chandra Mohan Patowary has already tendered his resignation owning moral responsibility for the recent poll debacle.

The regional party is on the lookout for an able leader to lead it. While a section of its well-wishers feels that almost all the founder leaders of the party are a discarded lot and the need of the hour is a young, energetic and able leader, another section of party well-wishers believes that the image of AGP working president Phani Bhushan Choudhury is still clean and, as such, he can lead the party from the front. Another section still pins hope on the leadership of former Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta. Those who want the regional party to be led by a young leader see an able leader in Kaliabor MLA Keshab Mahanta whose thinking, they believe, is more pragmatic than that of the rest. There is yet another section that believes that the regional party needs to be revived by bringing in an able leader from outside the party fold.

Some AGP workers and well-wishers think that various committees of the regional party are bulky and these need to be streamlined by reducing the number of members of the steering committee and of general secretaries and vice-presidents of the party’s central committee.       

Meanwhile, the party has called a meeting on May 26 and 27 for the post-mortem of the poll debacle. All the defeated candidates of the party have been called at the meeting. According to sources, the defeated candidates of the party will be asked to explain the reasons behind their defeat. The steering committee of the party will meet on May 29 to decide its future course of action and to take a decision on holding the central executive meeting of the party.