In a strategic move ahead of Assam’s assembly elections, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress Screening Committee chief, touches down Thursday for an action-packed two-day tour. The Wayanad MP’s focus: fine-tuning candidate selections through exhaustive consultations.
Dawn breaks with rituals at the revered Kamakhya Temple, then it’s straight to Rajiv Bhavan for back-to-back sessions from 11 AM onward, potentially running till midnight. Party insiders say these meetings will involve booth-level activists, block leaders, and frontal wings to ensure winnable picks.
AICC Assam in-charge Jitendra Singh and APCC chief Gaurav Gogoi unveiled the plans at a media briefing. Singh called it a pioneering effort—the most organized screening process in the state’s Congress history—designed for grassroots input.
Expect more visits from Priyanka to connect with voters and sync party machinery, Singh noted. Gogoi pushed for swift completion, eyeing a first candidate list by February’s end post-high command approval. He reaffirmed Congress’s lead in prep and ongoing seat-sharing huddles with allies.
Turning the heat on CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, Gogoi slammed his ‘Hindu leadership’ remarks as hypocritical, citing scandals over land grabs and cattle syndicates tied to his circle. Recent buzz around 12,000 bighas allegedly held by Sarma’s family? Just smokescreens, Gogoi charged, to mask governance failures.
Priyanka’s presence energizes Assam Congress, signaling a robust campaign to challenge BJP dominance.