E-Paper
Priyanka Gandhi to head Assam Congress screening committee
AICC general secretary (organisation) K. C. Venugopal said screening committees have been constituted for 5 states, Union Territories scheduled to go to polls in first half of 2026
Silchar: The Congress has appointed party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as the chairperson of its screening committee for the upcoming Assam assembly elections, a notification issued by All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary late Saturday night said.
According to AICC general secretary (organisation) K. C. Venugopal’s notification, screening committees have been constituted also for West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry scheduled to go to the polls in the first half of 2026.
For Assam, Priyanka, who is also an AICC general secretary and a Member of Parliament (MP), will head the four-member panel. Lok Sabha MPs Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka and Imran Masood, along with Sirivella Prasad, have been named as members of the committee.
The screening committees will function alongside the party’s organisational leadership in the respective states. AICC general secretaries in charge, Pradesh Congress Committee presidents, Congress Legislature Party leaders, and AICC secretaries attached to the in-charges will serve as ex-officio members of the panels.
Elections to the 126-member Assam legislative assembly are expected to be held in March and April.
Earlier this week, Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi indicated that the party may contest around 100 of the 126 seats in the state, a move that drew criticism from leaders of its allies, including Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi.
Last month, the Congress joined hands with CPI(M), Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Parishad, CPI, CPI(ML) Liberation, Jatiya Dal-Asom, and the Karbi Anglong-based All Party Hill Leaders Conference to fight the assembly elections on a common platform.
At present, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds 64 seats in the Assam assembly, while its allies—Asom Gana Parishad, United People’s Party Liberal, and Bodoland People’s Front—together account for 19 MLAs. In the opposition camp, the Congress has 26 MLAs, followed by AIUDF with 15, CPI(M) with one, and one Independent legislator.
In West Bengal, senior Congress leader B. K. Hariprasad has been appointed chairperson of the screening committee. The other members include Dr. Mohammad Jawed, Mamta Devi, and B. P. Singh.
The formation of the screening panels underlines the Congress’s attempt to streamline candidate selection and strengthen coordination ahead of a crucial round of assembly elections.
