Guwahati, March 25 : In a setback to Congress in Assam, party MLA from the state's Naoboicha constituency Bharat Chandra Narah resigned on Monday.

The development came a day after Bharat Chandra quit as chairman of the Congress' media cell in Assam after his wife Ranee Narah -- a former Union Minister, was denied a ticket for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Bharat Chandra Narah has sent his resignation letter to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.

"I do, hereby, resign from the Indian National Congress with immediate effect," he wrote.

Bharat Chandra Narah was elected to the state assembly six times on a Congress ticket.

He registered consecutive victories in Dhakuakhana constituency between 1985-2011 and was also a Cabinet minister in the state.

In 2021, he contested from Naoboicha Assembly seat in Lakhimpur district and was again elected on a Congress ticket.

His wife Ranee Narah was being considered a strong contender for the ticket in Lakhimpur seat in Assam.

She won this Lok Sabha constituency thrice and was once elected to Rajya Sabha as well. The Congress leader also served as a Union Minister in the erstwhile Manmohan Singh-led government.

However, the Congress this time picked Uday Shankar Hazarika instead of Ranee Narah from Lakhimpur Lok Sabha seat. He switched from the BJP to the Congress in December last year.

/IANS