Ripun Bora quits Congress, joins All India Trinamool Congress

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) felt the post-Rajya Sabha poll jolt today when former minister Ripun Bora quit the party and joined the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) at Kolkata later in the day.

Ripun Bora joined the Congress in 1976. He led the party in the 2021 Assembly election. He fought the recently-held Rajya Sabha poll in Assam on a Congress ticket. However, despite the number remaining in his favour, he had to bite the dust.

Bora quitting the Congress started doing rounds last night. And he sent his two-page resignation letter to AICC president Sonia Gandhi at this noon. In the afternoon, Ripun Bora, his wife Monika Bora (former MLA from Gohpur) and his son joined the AITC in the presence of AITC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. Welcoming Bora and his family members, the AITC tweeted, "Delighted to welcome Shri @ripunbora, former Minister of Panchayat and Rural Development, Minister of Education in Assam, former Rajya Sabha MP & former president of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee! He joined us today in the presence of Shri @abhishekaitc."

Meanwhile, after joining the AITC, Bora changed his tweeter account to 'member AITC'. It is not clear what responsibility the AITC will entrust Bora.

Earlier, former All India Mahila Congress (AIMC) president Sushmita Dev joined the AITC. She was a prominent Congress leader from Assam.

In his resignation letter to Sonia Gandhi, Bora said, "…After a devastating defeat in Assam Assembly Elections in 2016, you gave me the responsibility of PCC president, Assam. Since then, I have been devoting tremendous handwork to revive the party and have been able to build Congress to challenge the BJP in all elections right from Panchayat, Urban local bodies, several Assembly Bye-Elections and in the Lok Sabha election of 2019. Even in 2021, during the Assam Assembly Election, Congress emerged such a way that people started to believe and expect Congress to form the government. But due to continuous inner fight by a section of senior-most leaders of Assam PCC, people lost faith in us and did not give a mandate to us to form the government.

"I am grateful to you for re-nominating me for the second term as the party candidate for the recently-held Rajya Sabha election. Unfortunately, some of my party leaders played their role in such a manner that paved the way for the BJP to win both the Rajya Sabha seats.

"I am pained to inform you that it is an open secret in Assam that instead of fighting BJP, a section of senior-most leaders of Assam PCC is in secret understanding with BJP government, mainly with the Chief Minister. Against this backdrop, my conscience does not allow me to continue in the Congress."

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