Guwahati, May 26 (IANS) Congress leaders C.P. Joshi and Ambika Soni will address the meeting of the Congress legislature party here on Friday where its leader will be elected, it was announced here.
"The basic idea is to elect the leader of the CLP. Both Joshi and Soni will meet all the elected Congress MLAs this time and the meeting is expected to elect the CLP leader," said senior party spokesman P.L. Punia at a press conference at Rajiv Bhavan, the party headquarters here.
Asked about the party's debacle in the recent assembly election in the state, he said that the Congress accepts the mandate with humility and respect.
"Former chief minister Tarun Gogoi is one of the most senior leaders of the party. It is a great satisfaction for us that there is not a single allegation against the chief minister in Assam, who was in power for three consecutive terms," he said adding the party would analyze the reasons for the debacle at a proper time.
State unit vice president Ripun Bora, who was also present on the occasion, however, ruled out the possibility of an immediate change in party leadership and said that the high command would take a decision in this regard after a detailed analysis of the debacle.
"We do not believe, that a change of guard would help the party at this moment. There was a wave for the BJP and its allies in Assam ahead of the polls and the BJP and its allies have spread false propaganda against the ruling party. So it is not correct to blame any particular person for the defeat," he said.
His statement assumes significance as a section of leaders in the party had already started a campaign for ousting state chief Anjan Dutta, blaming him solely for the humiliating defeat.
The party, which had won 78 out of the 126 assembly seats in 2011 assembly polls, could bag only 26 seats in the 2016 election.
