Guwahati, Jan. 19: Cut off from the nerve centre of the very party he founded 19 years ago, Prafulla Kumar Mahanta is certain to stake claim to the position of pre-eminence that was once his during the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP)?s annual conclave later this month.
An aide of the former chief minister said he would announce his candidature for the AGP president?s post, now held by Brindaban Goswami, ?within the next few days?.
He said Mahanta, who led the AGP unchallenged for 16 years till 2001, would use all his ?resources and political acumen? to wrest the reins of the party from Goswami.
The AGP election will be held during the party?s annual conference, slated for January 28. The Tezpur conclave is expected to be one of the stormiest in recent years.
Mahanta has indicated he is keen to return to the helm of party affairs. ?It is a foregone conclusion. Mahanta will be a candidate in the election and you will hear the official announcement in a few days? time,? his aide said.
Another party leader said Mahanta had an eye on the 2006 Assembly poll. ?If Mahanta does not contest the post, Brindaban Goswami will get the chance to lead the party in the Assembly poll next year. Given the state?s tradition of returning the main Opposition party to power, Goswami may very well become the chief minister.?
The former AGP president almost faded out of politics after the party received a drubbing in the 2001 Assembly poll and reports of an allegedly illicit relationship cast a shadow on his image. Both developments led to Goswami taking over the party reins in September that year.
However, Goswami did no better than Mahanta. Under his leadership, the AGP failed to make a splash in both the panchayat and municipal elections.
With the bigamy charge against Mahanta remaining unsubstantiated, Mahanta returned to active politics in the latter half of last year and has since been clawing his way back. ?He still has a large support base in the party. It won?t be easy for Goswami to retain his post,? the AGP leader said.
Mahanta?s comeback bid got an impetus last night when former minister Rekha Rani Das Boro was re-elected president of the AGP women?s wing, called the Asom Mahila Parishad. She is known to be a confidante of the former chief minister.
Mahanta is expected to meet party members representing the district units from tomorrow to mobilise support.
His detractors suspect he will part ways with the AGP and align with the BJP if he fails to dislodge Goswami. ?He may even join hands with P.A. Sangma and float a new regional forum, which will align with the BJP in the Lok Sabha election,? a Goswami loyalist said.
The Tezpur conclave will determine whether the AGP will have an electoral alliance with the BJP. The Mahanta camp argues that the ruling Congress will gain from the split in the non-Congress votes if the AGP and the BJP do not join hands.