Congress Working Committee condoles demise of Ahmed Patel, Tarun Gogoi

Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other party leaders lauded the stellar roles played by Patel and Gogoi

Coming to terms with the death of two stalwarts, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Friday mourned the demise of Ahmed Patel and Tarun Gogoi and hailed their contributions to keep the party united.

At a virtual meeting chaired by Congress President Sonia Gandhi, the CWC described ‘Ahmedbhai’ as a man with no personal ambition and Gogoi as the “tallest leader” and the “authentic voice” of Assam and the northeastern region.

“Shri Patel’s signal contribution was his unique capacity to reconcile competing aspirations and forge unity and comradeship among the leaders and members of the party,” the CWC resolution said.

It said that Patel carried this remarkable talent to reconcile the competing aspirations of other political parties as well and to forging coalitions at the Centre and in the states.

“He was a pillar of strength to the two coalition governments that were led by the Congress during 2004-2014,” the resolution read.

The rich tribute to Patel also noted that he was deeply religious but secular to the core. “Ahmedbhai's simplicity, austerity, accessibility and generosity were legendary,” it said.

The CWC noted that Gogoi had taken over as Assam Chief Minister during the most troubling time in the history of the state.

“Taking forward the historic Assam Accord of 1985, he transformed Assam into a vibrant and modern state. His critical role in persuading many militant groups to abjure violence and join the mainstream will be written in the annals of Assam and long remembered by the people,” the CWC said.

It described Gogoi as the quintessential consensus-seeker, saying in every task that he undertook, he brought his enormous knowledge of the complex issues, deft political skills, amiable disposition and genuine desire to find a common ground.

“As a Congress worker, MP for six terms, Union minister, president of Assam PCC, and chief minister for three consecutive terms (2001-2016), he epitomised the fundamental values of the Congress party and was the party's proud standard-bearer,” it said.

The CWC noted that Gogoi’s death came ahead of the Assembly elections in Assam.

In recent months, Gogoi had been campaigning extensively and vigorously to secure a mandate once again for the Congress in the forthcoming state polls, it said.

“The CWC is confident that Congressmen and women of Assam will continue to take encouragement and inspiration from the life and work of Shri Gogoi and fulfill his desire,” it said.