Niranjan Patnaik Replaces Prasad Harichandan As OPCC President

New Delhi/Bhubaneswar: Putting all speculations to rest, Congress high command Rahul Gandhi on Thursday restructured Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) and appointed veteran Congress leader Niranjan Patnaik as its president in place of Prasad Harichandan.

Chiranjib Biswal, Naba Das and Pradip Majhi will take charge as OPCC working presidents.

The decision was taken after senior Congress leaders from the state and former OPCC President Prasad Harichandan met Rahul and All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Odisha Jitendra Singh in New Delhi this morning.

Similarly, former MP Bhakta Charan Das has been appointed as chairperson of Campaign Committee and Jagannath Patnaik as covener of Coordination Committee with Jitendra Singh as its chairperson. Former OPCC presidents Jayadev Jena and Sarat Patnaik are chairperson and convener of the Core Committee respectively. Former CM Hemananda Biswal has been appointed chairperson of Disciplinary Committee and Former Union Minister Srikan Jena as Chairperson of Manifesto Committee with Sarat Rout as its convener, an AICC release said.

Talking to mediapersons after the announcement, the new OPCC president said the aspirations of the people of Odisha are yet to be fulfilled and they are being misguided by the BJD and the BJP.

To a question on the recent exodus of senior party leaders, he said they had quit Congress on personal grounds. He, however, said those who have faith in Congress are most welcome.

Niranjan said efforts would be made to strengthen the grand old party at the grassroots and win the trust and confidence of the people.

In his reaction, Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati said all leaders and workers will sink their differences and work unitedly under the leadership of the new OPCC president.

Prasad too had hinted at revamp of Congress in the state after the party’s debacle in Bijepur bypoll.