Guwahati, Jan. 30: He became president of the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) over two years ago, but battle-hardened Brindaban Goswami will regard his victory over Prafulla Kumar Mahanta in the fight to retain the top job as his finest moment.
Chosen to lead the party after Mahanta, his predecessor, was forced to step down in September 2001, there were doubts among a section in the AGP ? and outside ? about Goswami?s ability to lead the regional party.
However, the man known for his cool temperament silenced his detractors in style this morning, defeating his challenger by a margin of 97 votes in the election in Tezpur.
Goswami, 54, was the unanimous choice of the party?s central executive members when they searched for a ?bold and clean leader? to lead the party after its founder-president had to quit in the aftermath of the debacle in the 2001 Assembly poll and a bigamy charge.
After being elevated to the post of president on September 6, 2001, Goswami was asked to seek the mandate of the party rank and file.
Nearly two-and-a-half years later, the AGP reposed faith in his leadership at its annual conference, which concluded in Tezpur today.
Goswami?s tussle with Mahanta began soon after he was elected leader of the AGP Legislature Party, a position that earned him the status of the leader of the Opposition in the Assembly. He was elected to the Assembly from Tezpur for the third term in 2001.
Goswami, who was education minister in the first AGP government that assumed office in 1985, left the party in 1990 along with senior leaders Bhrigu Phukan and Pulakesh Barua to form the Natun Asom Gana Parishad.
Though the party merged with the AGP in 1992, Goswami and Phukan were sidelined, apparently because they dared to revolt against Mahanta.
Phukan left the party for good after he was suspended, while Goswami pledged to continue his struggle against alleged deviations from the AGP constitution by the party leadership.
Goswami was the chief convener of the party committee that drafted the constitution. He was also president of the All Assam Students Union and general secretary of the Post Graduate Students Union of Gauhati University.