GUWAHATI: Despite being left out of the electoral fray, Assam BJP MLA Atul Bora has unexpectedly emerged as a key political figure overnight, with at least two candidates visiting him to seek his blessings for the April 9 Assembly elections.
The BJP did not renominate the freewheeling Bora. The Dispur MLA was replaced with Congress turncoat and Nagaon MP Pradyut Bordoloi.
The decision left Bora livid.
The Dispur seat, which he has held since 2016, witnessed significant changes in its demography and territorial composition, following the 2023 delimitation exercise, with areas added to the newly created Dimoria constituency.
Given his support base, his blessings mean a lot to candidates contesting from Dispur and Dimoria seats.
On Friday, Congress’s Dispur candidate Mira Borthakur Goswami and the Asom Gana Parishad’s (AGP) Dimoria candidate Tapan Das visited Bora’s Guwahati residence to seek his blessings for the elections.
“Atul Bora is a senior politician. I have seen and learnt politics from him. It is encouraging that he said he would support me,” Goswami told the media after meeting the MLA.
“If candidates visit my house and I give my blessings to them, what’s wrong with that?” Bora had asked.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma later visited Bora to placate him. He said Bora could not be fielded from the seat due to certain political developments.
“We apprised him of the problems we faced (during finalising the list of candidates). He stands beside us and will actively participate in poll campaign in Dimoria and other constituencies. He will turn more active than before if we retain power,” Sarma stated.
However, Bora kept his cards close to chest.
“After I was denied a ticket, I had three options – contest as an independent, bless Mira Borthakur Goswami or stay silent. I will reveal my position on March 22,” Bora said.
He has a background in the AGP that was born out of the six-year-long anti-immigrants’ agitation (1979-85).
He was first elected to the state Assembly in 1985 when the AGP had formed the government. Notably, when AGP formed the government for a second time in 1996, he was appointed as a minister.