New Delhi: The Congress on Monday named Gaurav Gogoi, the party’s deputy leader in Lok Sabha, as the president of its Assam unit, setting the stage for a high-stakes battle with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of the BJP in the state which goes to polls in less than a year.
Over the last two months, Sarma has launched near-daily attacks against Gaurav, alleging that his wife has ties with the Pakistani government—a claim the Congress leader has denied, challenging the chief minister to produce evidence.
Gaurav (42) is the son of the late Tarun Gogoi, who served three consecutive terms as the chief minister of Assam between 2001 and 2016. Gaurav currently represents the Jorhat constituency in Lok Sabha.
During the 2024 general elections, Sarma led an aggressive campaign against Gaurav in Jorhat but failed to defeat him.
In his first statement following his appointment as the state unit chief, Gaurav made it a point to acknowledge his wife’s contribution in his political journey. “I would not have been here without the guidance of my parents and the support of my family, especially my wife and children,” he posted on X.
Gaurav married Elizabeth Colburn, who is a British citizen, in 2013.
Bhupen Kumar Borah, who Gaurav succeeds as the state unit president, has been appointed as the party’s campaign committee chief. Borah was appointed to the post of state unit chief in July 2021, after the Congress’s second successive defeat at the BJP’s hands in the Assam assembly polls.
“It is a blessing to work with so many dedicated and inspiring senior leaders and workers in the Congress party in Assam. Their wisdom, experience and dedication to the party has taught me many things. I look forward to work with my seniors and colleagues. In the days to come I will seek the blessings of the people of Assam. I am confident that together we can create a better future for our state. Joi Ai Axom ! Jai Hind !” Gaurav added on X.
In the 2021 assembly polls, the BJP won 60 seats in the 126-member assembly, while the Congress bagged just 29. It was in the 2016 elections that the BJP came to power in Assam for the first time, dislodging the Congress led by Tarun Gogoi. By then, Sarma, once considered Tarun Gogoi’s protege, had left the Congress and joined the BJP.
Sarma was upset with Tarun Gogoi’s refusal to leave the CM’s post, as well as his decision to induct his son Gaurav into politics. Ghulam Nabi Azad, who quit the Congress in 2022, claimed in his autobiography that in 2014, then Congress President Sonia Gandhi had given a go-ahead to replace Gogoi with Sarma, but Rahul Gandhi stalled the move.
I am grateful to Congress President Shri @kharge ji , LOP Shri @RahulGandhi ji, GSO Shri @kcvenugopalmp ji and GS Shri @JitendraSAlwar ji for trusting me with this responsibility.
Former PCC President Shri @BhupenKBorah led the party from the front and made a tremendous…
— Gaurav Gogoi (@GauravGogoiAsm) May 26, 2025
In the 2024 general elections, Sarma pulled out all stops, even getting virtually the entire state cabinet to campaign against Gaurav in Jorhat. However, Gaurav defeated his nearest rival, sitting MP Topon Gogoi of the BJP, by a margin of more than 1.44 lakh votes.
Overall, the Congress performance was dismal, with the party winning three seats compared to the BJP’s nine in Assam.
The BJP also handed the Congress a drubbing in the recently held rural local body polls in the state, including in Jorhat. The ruling party won 272 zilla parishad seats, including all 16 in Jorhat, compared to 72 of the Congress.
What appears to have tipped the scale in Gaurav’s favour, however, is the series of allegations that Sarma has levelled against the Congress leader and his wife since February this year.
Sarma even got the Assam Police to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe Gaurav and his wife’s alleged links with the Pakistani establishment.
Senior All India Congress Committee (AICC) office-bearers had been indicating that the party was eager to elevate Gaurav as the president of the Assam unit as his running feud with Sarma was a clear indicator of his “political relevance”.
“It is no secret that Himanta is wary of Gaurav’s popularity. And since Himanta has made the political fight completely personality driven, who better than Gaurav as the counter?” a top AICC functionary told ThePrint.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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