Bengal Congress chief Somen Mitra’s son has lost to a nominee from the Adhir Chowdhury faction in the party in the election to the post of the state Youth Congress president.

In the five-cornered election which took place over Monday and Tuesday, Shadab Khan defeated Mitra’s son Rohan by 1,926 votes. The votes were counted on Wednesday. While Rohan got 7,269 votes, Khan, 33, polled 9,195 votes.

According to the convention, Rohan, 34, will become a vice-president of the Youth Congress as he finished as the runner-up.

The contest was a key talking point in the Congress since Mitra started backing his son’s candidature. Khan, known for his proximity to Chowdhury, refused to back down from the contest.

“This is a clear negative vote against Somenda’s decision to back his son in the election while he himself occupies the state Congress president’s chair. This nepotism did not go down well with even those factions within the Congress which are not opposed to Somenda,” said a Congress leader.

“Shadab is an Adhir acolyte. By letting Rohan contest and lose against such a candidate, Somenda has allowed questions to arise on the quality of his own leadership,” he added.

While Rohan’s cellphone remained unreachable on Wednesday, Khan said he was “humbled” by the result.

“I am blessed by the overwhelming support of our workers. It is my responsibility to take everyone along and work together for an inclusive, collective leadership,” said Khan.

Sources close to him said Behrampore MP Chowdhury had “hailed” his victory and asked him to ensure Rohan did not feel “left behind”.

Shadab Khan Telegraph picture