Congress appoints Subhankar Sarkar as president of its West Bengal unit

The Congress on Saturday, 21 September, appointed Subhankar Sarkar as the president of its West Bengal unit, replacing veteran leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

Sarkar has been relieved from his current position as AICC secretary.

"The state Congress will function as the party workers in Bengal want," Sarkar said after the party's central leadership announced his appointment.

He also said the people's wishes would be the most important factor in choosing the future path for the Congress in the state.

In a statement, the party said its president Mallikarjun Kharge has appointed Sarkar as the chief of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee with immediate effect.

The party appreciated the contributions of outgoing PCC president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

Sarkar was the All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary looking after the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Mizoram.

Chowdhury, who had lost the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to TMC candidate Yusuf Pathan from his home turf Baharampur after five consecutive terms, had resigned as the president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee after the Parliamentary polls and the process of appointing a new chief of the state unit was underway.

The Congress leadership had taken feedback from state leaders on maintaining the balance in ties with the Trinamool Congress at the national and state levels, as well as on the choice of the next chief of the grand old party's West Bengal unit.

The Congress' state leadership, especially Chowdhury, has been at variance with the coordination and support seen between the Congress and the TMC at the central level.

Meanwhile, the Congress on Saturday also appointed M.K. Bhardwaj and Bhanu Mahajan as acting working presidents of its Jammu and Kashmir unit.

The appointments come amid the ongoing assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has appointed Bhardwaj and Mahajan as acting working presidents of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee with immediate effect, a statement from the party said.

The Congress in August appointed Tariq Hameed Karra as president of its Jammu and Kashmir unit. He had replaced Vikar Rasool Wani.

Kharge had also appointed two working presidents for Jammu and Kashmir -- Tara Chand and Raman Bhalla.

Elections in Jammu and Kashmir are being held in three phases. Voting for 24 seats was held in the first phase on 18 September. The next phase of polling for 26 seats will be held on 25 September. Voting for the third phase would be held on 1 October while results would declared on 8 October.