Congress president Ripun Bora emotional eloquence pegs up party workers

SILCHAR: Congress state president Ripun Bora's 3-day trip around the districts of Cachar, Hailakandi and Karimganj and his meeting with party leaders and workers as well as his address to them was more an emotional overdrive than reasoned approach to peg up their morale after losing dominance once INC enjoyed in the valley. It is now all BJP Cachar with Rajdeep Goala embracing the saffron fold. Hailakandi has gone to AIUDF. Karimganj still retains two seats for Congress. Alliance with Ajmal is still hazy. But, Ripun Bora after landing here claimed the Mahajote of Congress and AIUDF will sweep all the 15 seats of the valley.

The State Congress president with his host of colleagues from Guwahati along with All India Mahila Congress president Sushmita Dev did whip up the sagging morale of workers as he addressed their meet at Silchar, Hailakandi and the last leg of his stormy tour on Tuesday at Karimganj. But, total disruption of his meet with grass root workers at Kuchila, 20 km from Hailakandi, due to factional feud resulting in bloody blows and fisticuffs in presence of Gajendra Upamanyu, district in charge, before the arrival of Ripun Bora, jolted the Congress plan for cohesion in the party.

But all was not disappointing. The crowded presence of leaders and workers, virtually floating without moorings, at all the venues must have come as a big booster for Ripun Bora amidst the reports of a good number of old and seasoned leaders deserting the party and more preparing to leave. The State Congress president however put up a brave face before mediapersons to assert "Let the grand alliance take shape and see the results on ground.' Can the alliance beat BJP on its Silchar citadel," asked a journalist? He has no answer.

All that he has to say to the workers at all meets is to strengthen the organisation from the grass root level and prepare for the battle of ballots of 2021. Wise and intelligent Sushmita Dev knows well how to play on her home turf kicked up key issues and prompted Ripun Bora to hammer on closed paper mills of Panchgram and Nagaon for revival, relief package for employees in distress for the last 48 months and of course assurance to put them on steam if grand alliance comes back to power. It was a visit for Ripun Bora and his retinue of leaders well expressed in Latin 'Veni Vidi Vici' (I came, I saw, I conquered). Only time will tell what the State Congress president has conquered.