All India Congress Committee (AICC) Odisha in-charge A Chella Kumar reached Bhubaneswar on Monday amid reports of factionalism and rifts spiralling in the party's state unit and held a meeting with senior state leaders. Kumar's visit comes in the backdrop of remarks by Congress's chief whip in the state Assembly, Tara Prasad Bahinipati, holding Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Niranjan Patnaik responsible for the downward trend of the party's performance in the state. The friction is a matter of concern for the party as the state is gearing up for rural body polls scheduled for early 2022. Reacting to the fallout between Patnaik and Bahinipati, Chella Kumar said such activities would not be tolerated in the party. After a meeting convened with the senior Congress leaders of the state, Chella Kumar also assured that the discord has been mended. “Party would not take any disciplinary action against Bahinipati as he has already accepted his mistake,” he added. 2 UP Cong leaders quit Meanwhile, two senior AICC members from Uttar Pradesh, Shailendra Singh and Rajesh Singh, have resigned from the party's primary membership, alleging that old and loyal Congress leaders are being neglected. Congress state secretary Raghavendra Pratap Singh denied the allegations. With PTI from Lucknow
