Berhampur, Oct 23: The Congress has failed to win its former home turf Berhampur Assembly constituency for the last 33 years.
Berhampur was the centre of Ganjam district Congress politics. The district party office which was remaining occupied throughout the year has lost its significance with scarcity of leaders after the veteran leaders jumped to BJD.
Party district president Ramesh Jena is holding meetings in a farmhouse on the outskirts of the city due to judicial restrictions on his visit to Berhampur. The Berhampur City Congress Committee is not seen in active mode any more during party programmes and protests against the ruling party. The candidates who lost both Berhampur Assembly and Lok Sabha seats in 2019 are not active in politics.
Besides, the party won only one corporator seat out of 42 wards of Berhampur Municipality Corporation in last election.
The party has failed to win the Assembly seat since 1990 as veteran leaders jumped to BJD along with their workers for personal gain instead of reviving the organisation.
Similarly, the party had been winning the Berhampur Lok Sabha seat from 1957 till 1999. Several prominent leaders like Jagannath Rao, former PM PV Narasimha Rao, Jayanti Patnaik and Gopinath Gajapati have represented the constituency.
The BJP won the seat in 1999 in alliance with BJD and the Congress return back in 2004. However, the BJD has been winning the seat for the last three terms.
