New Delhi, March 6 :     West Bengal Congress chief A.B.A. Ghani Khan Chowdhury will stay in office till the party polls are over. After considerable deliberations, the Congress high command has decided to retain 'Barkatda', highly-placed sources in the Congress told The Telegraph. A senior party member handling West Bengal affairs said: 'Chowdhury is a towering leader. Even at this age and given the state of his health, he is an asset to the party.' The decision comes as a blow to state Congress working president Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, who lobbied hard to oust Chowdhury. Party leaders said in the next two to three days, a state executive will be formed to give 'adequate representation' to the various factions. The Bengal unit was functioning without an executive body since Chowdhury and Das Munshi took over. After the duo fell out, the state Congress has come to be identified with constant bickering and one-upmanship. An AICC functionary said chief Sonia Gandhi was keen to continue with Chowdhury, though she was not happy with the idea of having a PCC chief and a working president. Sources, however, said Chowdhury may not be able to continue once the party polls are over. 'He has not been keeping well,' a leader said. Chowdhury's reprieve followed hectic parleys between AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad and leaders from West Bengal, including Atish Sinha, Somen Mitra and Das Munshi. Sinha and Mitra reportedly backed Chowdhury. The state chief had called on Sonia Gandhi, who asked him to continue the 'good work'.