After months of speculation, senior party leader Jayadev Jena was appointed as the president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) on Monday. Jena, a SC leader who also earlier worked as the PCC chief for over four years since 2004, replaced Niranjan Patnaik. Jena and Patnaik belong to Keonjhar district and are known to be opponents to each other in the party.

An official communiqué to this effect from the All India Congress Committee was received here. "Congress president Sonia Gandhi has approved the proposal for appointing Jayadev Jena as president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee in place of Niranjan Patnaik with immediate effect," it said.

Jena, also a former State Minister, is currently holding the post of an AICC general secretary and is in charge of Assam and Uttar Pradesh.

Though terming Jena as gentle, amiable and accessible to all strata of party members, a section of the State Congress would have bee happier if a "more dynamic leader" would have headed the party ahead of the upcoming general elections, said party sources.

In fact, it was speculated that either of Union Minister Srikant Jena, Kalahandi MP and former Union Minister Bhakta Charan Das and another senior leader lalatendu Bidyadhar (lulu) Mohapatra would be chosen by the AICC as the PCC head. These leaders, along with Jayadev Jena, had been invited twice by Rahul Gandhi recently for talks on the State organisational affairs. It may be noted that Jayadev Jena's son Sangram Jena is president of State Youth Congress.