Bhubaneswar, Jan 24: In a setback to the Odisha Congress, at least 41 party workers supporting expelled leader and former MLA Mohammed Moquim resigned from the party on Saturday, voicing strong dissent against the state leadership.

According to party sources, those who submitted resignation letters include a former Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) secretary, a former party spokesperson, several former block Congress presidents, a Mahila Congress secretary, along with a number of youth and student leaders. The mass resignation has exposed growing unrest within the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC).

The resigning leaders alleged that the party is suffering from what they described as “ineffective and directionless leadership” under OPCC president Bhakta Charan Das. They accused the state unit of failing to address public issues and neglecting the voices of its own grassroots workers.

The dissenting leaders further claimed that the Congress in Odisha has been reduced to an election-centric organisation, with little regard for organisational strengthening or internal democracy. They alleged that senior leaders and grassroots workers are being ignored in decision-making processes.

The resignations also come in the backdrop of the party’s poor performance in the Nuapada by-election. The dissidents alleged that the Congress leadership failed to introspect or conduct a proper review to understand the reasons behind the electoral defeat.

The immediate trigger for the mass exit, however, was the expulsion of senior Congress leader Mohammed Moquim, a former MLA from Barabati-Cuttack. The resigning workers termed the decision arbitrary and reflective of a widening disconnect between the state leadership and party cadres on the ground.