Kolkata, July 30: Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury spoke out over the controversy regarding West Bengal Congress party president's post and took potshots at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. "The day Mallikarjun Kharge became the party president, all other posts of the party in the country became temporary, according to the Constitution of the party. Even my post became temporary. While the election was underway, Mallikarjun Kharge said on television that if necessary I would be kept out, which made me upset. The election results were also not good for the party in West Bengal," said Chowdhury.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's comment comes after AICC general secretary in-charge of West Bengal, Ghulam Ahmad Mir said on Tuesday that Chowdhury had resigned as the president of the West Bengal Congress Committee after the Lok Sabha polls and the process to appoint a new chief of the state unit is on.
Speaking about the controversy and reports that he had resigned from the post of state unit chief, Chowdhury said, "...In between I was informed by AICC to call a meeting of Congress leaders of West Bengal as the party wanted to pass two resolutions. I was aware that the meeting had been called under my presidency and I was still the West Bengal Congress president but during the meeting, Ghulam Ali Mir while addressing said that the former president is also here. At that time, I got to know I had become former president (of West Bengal Congress)."
Earlier, Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K C Venugopal, held a meeting with senior West Bengal party leaders, including Chowdhury, and discussed several issues, including ties with the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in the state.
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"Discussions took place with senior leaders. Since he (Chowdhury) was sitting in that briefing, I informed everyone that 'you should know that Adhir Ranjan ji after elections had tendered his resignation and you should place your views on the strategy of the party going forward towards the 2026 assembly polls'," Mir told PTI.
"That is the truth that he had given his resignation. I said that Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury had given his resignation. So since he has given resignation, he is a former (PCC chief) only," Mir said, defending himself.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has been at the loggerheads with party's central leadership over the Congress "extending the olive branch" to the TMC in Bengal. Chowdhury has maintained that the Congress party should go all out in West Bengal and try to get in power on its own and has often hinted that any sort of "understanding" or political alliance in West Bengal with the TMC would not be in party's interest. Despite the Congress and TMC being uneasy alliance partners in the INDIA alliance, Chowdhury has time and again spoken against West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, which is one of the reasons why the Congress leadership is unhappy with the senior leader, as per reports.
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