Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been appointed chairperson of the screening committee for Assam’s upcoming state elections, marking the first time a Gandhi family member holds this crucial role. The elections, scheduled in just three months, are considered high-stakes for Congress, which has been out of power in Assam since 2016.
In her new role, Priyanka Gandhi will oversee the selection of candidates and coordinate alliances with smaller parties. She is supported by Congress MPs Imran Masood, Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, and Sirivella Prasad as members of the Assam screening committee. Veteran leaders Madhusudan Mistry, TS Singh Deo, and BK Hariprasad will chair similar committees for Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal, respectively.
Assam is a strategic target for Congress. In the last state election, the BJP-led NDA won 75 of 126 seats, while Congress-led alliances secured 50, with just a 1.6% vote share difference. Gaurav Gogoi, son of former CM Tarun Gogoi and current Deputy Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, is a frontrunner from Congress. Priyanka Gandhi’s leadership is expected to strengthen his campaign against the BJP.
While Priyanka has gained visibility in recent months through parliamentary debates and protests on issues like voter roll revisions and the G Ram G bill, she also carries the shadow of a setback in Uttar Pradesh in 2022, where Congress won only 2 of 403 seats under her supervision.
The BJP has already intensified its attacks on Gaurav Gogoi, with Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma alleging controversial links against his family, claims strongly denied by the Gogois. Despite challenges, Congress hopes Priyanka Gandhi’s leadership and active campaigning can end the party’s decade-long drought in the state.
