Congress Organization's Cards to Open in First Week of September; Deliberations Intensify over Names of District and City Presidents

 

Lucknow Bureau 

Mirzapur, August 29. Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, efforts to strengthen the Congress organization from the booth level up have gathered momentum. After reviewing the performance of long-dormant and long-serving district and city Congress presidents, the party high command has initiated preparations for extensive organizational changes. New district and city Congress presidents across various districts in the state, including Mirzapur, are expected to be announced in the first week of September.

 

In political circles, this push to rebuild the organization right before the assembly elections is considered crucial. While other political parties in the state are busy finalizing prospective candidates and fine-tuning election strategies, Congress's primary focus remains on organizational strengthening. UP Congress Committee President Ajay Rai and AICC in-charge for UP Rajendra Pal Gautam have consistently reiterated that the party is working to reinforce its setup down to the booth level and build a presence across all 403 assembly constituencies in the state.

 

Amid this organizational activity, discussions in political corridors also point out that the Congress has not yet presented a clear roadmap regarding its electoral strategy and alliances for the UP Assembly elections. The Samajwadi Party (SP) is also reported to be in a dilemma over Congress's eleventh-hour strategy. Meanwhile, despite the BJP's strong ground presence across all five assembly segments in Mirzapur district, the SP is perceived as lacking sufficient independent strength to mount a solo challenge, making Congress's support critical.

 

Although Congress may lack a distinct and consolidated vote bank in the state, its presence, public goodwill, and political influence persist among ordinary voters. The SP hopes to leverage Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's growing popularity for electoral gains. However, UP in-charge RP Gautam and state president Ajay Rai are reportedly not very enthusiastic about an alliance with the Samajwadi Party. Under these circumstances, options such as a formal alliance or a mutual understanding involving friendly contests on select seats are likely being considered.

 

In line with this strategy, Congress has begun work to fortify its organization from booths to the streets. In Mirzapur, Sonbhadra, and Bhadohi districts, central observers and state co-observers have charted a roadmap to constitute block, mandal, and booth-level committees in every assembly constituency. The objective is to reactivate a dormant setup and establish a grassroots framework in each constituency.

 

In Mirzapur, Central Observer and former Rajasthan Minister of State Sangeeta Beniwal personally interacted with party workers across all five assembly segments. Over six consecutive days, she met party workers and functionaries to assess the organizational status and gathered feedback regarding the selection of new district and city presidents. Following this exercise, a panel of roughly three names for each post was prepared and submitted to Congress General Secretary (Organization) and MP K.C. Venugopal.

 

For the District Congress President post, the names of Shashi Bhushan Dubey Kanchania, Rajdhar Dubey, and Shiv Shankar Choubey are in contention. For the City Congress President post, names under consideration reportedly include Ramesh Chandra Prajapati Pappu, Advocate Vidhi Kumar Singh, and Naresh Chandra Chaudhary. The final decision now rests with the Congress high command.

 

The incumbent District Congress President, Shiv Kumar Singh Patel, has held the position since 2019. Questions have been raised regarding his tenure over the failure to form adequate booth committees. In the 2022 Assembly elections, the party's performance in the district was notably weak, deteriorating further in the Chhanbey and Majhawan/Marihan constituencies compared to previous elections.

 

Historically, Laliteshpati Tripathi was elected as a Congress MLA from the Marihan assembly seat in 2012. Although Congress lost the Chhanbey seat that year, its performance remained relatively strong, securing approximately 35,000 votes and signaling a robust ground presence. Subsequently, organizational weaknesses and consecutive electoral setbacks eroded the party's base.

 

The Congress leadership's entire focus is now on overhauling the legacy organization and assembling an active team of booth-level workers. The selection of district and city presidents represents a key milestone in this broader organizational revamp. Following the announcements in the first week of September, it will become clear which new faces are entrusted with leadership in the district and the exact political strategy Congress adopts heading into the upcoming

assembly elections.