Champa Thakur, Anurag Sharma, Suman Bharti Sharma among 11 named; Kinnaur and Shimla Rural posts still vacant
After months of organisational inertia, the Congress High Command has finally moved to fill the leadership vacuum at the district level in Himachal Pradesh by appointing presidents for 11 District Congress Committees. The state executive committee had remained dissolved since November 2024, affecting routine organisational functioning across the state.
The appointments were approved by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) president and have come into effect immediately. However, the party is yet to announce district presidents for Kinnaur and Shimla Rural.
According to the notification, Champa Thakur has been appointed district president for Mandi, Anurag Sharma for Kangra, and Suman Bharti Sharma for Hamirpur. Dorje Angrup has been given charge of Lahaul-Spiti, while Ses Ram Azad has been appointed for Kullu. Surjit Kumar Bharmouri will head the Chamba district unit, Anand Parmar has been named for Sirmaur, Subhash Chand Warmani for Solan, Inderjit Singh for Shimla Urban, Anjana Dhiman for Bilaspur, and Deshraj Gautam for Una.
The appointments are part of a broader organisational restructuring campaign aimed at strengthening the Congress at the grassroots level. As part of the exercise, observers appointed by the AICC conducted a detailed assessment of the organisational situation in each district. They interacted with party office-bearers, workers, and other stakeholders and submitted reports to the High Command. The final decisions were taken after one-on-one discussions with observers and consultations with senior leaders.
The Congress leadership believes the newly formed district team will inject fresh energy into the organisation and help prepare the party for upcoming electoral challenges by strengthening district and booth-level structures.
Issuing the notification, Congress National General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal expressed hope that the newly appointed district presidents would activate the organisation down to the booth level, energise party workers, and effectively communicate government policies and public interest issues to the people.
The delay in appointing district and other party functionaries came after the All India Congress Committee dissolved the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee and its district and block units in November 2024, leaving the state organisation without a formal leadership structure for over a year. During this period, routine coordination and mobilisation were hindered, and many workers expressed frustration at the absence of an active organisational core, with senior leaders repeatedly urging the High Command to expedite the reconstitution process. The prolonged gap also reportedly contributed to demoralisation among the cadre and uncertainty about leadership roles until recent appointments were made.
