Asam Sahitya Sabha Presidential Election: Only 2 Candidates Remain

Only two candidates out of a list of five initial nominations are still in the running for the prestigious position of Asam Sahitya Sabha president. After Dr Anuradha Sharma Pujari and Bhimakanta Baruah, noted stalwarts of Assamese literature, Dr Gobinda Prasad Sarma is the latest name to withdraw himself.

Dr Sarma, while mentioning his interest in taking up the post, said that he did not wish to a part of the electoral process in chosing the next president of the Asam Sahitya Sabha. In a social media post he said, "I wanted to become the president of Asam Sahitya Sabha. However, I did not want to be part of any election. I do not wish to be a part of any electoral process to become the president," he wrote.

"I do not want to be a part of the panel as well. Hence, I have decided to withdraw my name," the Gauhati University professor added.

Earlier, noted journalist-author Anuradha Sharma Pujari urged the Asam Sahitya Sabha to withdraw her name from consideration for the post of president. She expressed her gratitude to the literary organization for being considered in the first place, however, she said that her personal and professional engagements at present will prevent her from taking on additional responsibility.

In a letter addressed to the Sahitya Sabha, Pujari wrote, “With due respect, I would like to let you know that I am extremely grateful for being considered among the five-member list of candidates for the position of president of the Asam Sahitya Sabha for the duration of 2025-2027. Apart from me, the other four candidates have immensely contributed to the language and culture and are very senior entities. However, if anyone from this list were to withdraw the nomination, it would not hinder the process.”

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“As I do not want to enter the process for a position at the Sahitya Sabha, I would like to withdraw my name from the list of candidates. My current engagements in my personal life will prevent me from taking up additional duties as the president of Asam Sahitya Sabha. My professional commitments at present with some important works and for the foreseeable future will also keep me from fulfilling my duties at a prestigious organization like Asam Sahitya Sabha to my full potential,” Pujari further added.

Meanwhile, along with Dr Pujari, Bhimakanta Baruah also withdrew his name from consideration for the post. the trio's withdrawal now leaves only two candidates in the fray — Basanta Kumar Goswami and Upen Rabha Hakacham.

What this means

There has been some sort of controversry around the presidential election of the Asam Sahitya Sabha in recent times, which the organization sought to put to rest with the five-member list of contenders. This list, including Basanta Kumar Goswami, Dr Gobinda Prasad Sarma, Upen Rabha Hakacham, Bhimakanta Baruah, and Anuradha Sarma Pujari, was unanimously agreed upon by all participating writers.

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