GUWAHATI: The United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) in Assam is banking on peace and development to win from Kokrajhar, the lone seat it is contesting following its seat-sharing understanding with NDA partners – BJP and Asom Gana Parishad.
The constituency, which is reserved for Scheduled Tribes, falls under the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). The BTR remained restive for decades, and then peace returned after the Centre had signed the BTR accord with some insurgent groups in January 2020.
Ever since then, no major incident of violence has occurred in BTR, which comprises the five districts of Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa, Tamulpur, and Udalguri. The UPPL-BJP-Gana Suraksha Party (GSP) combine is in power in the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), which administers BTR.
UPPL president and BTC chief Pramod Boro is optimistic that UPPL would be able to wrest the Kokrajhar seat from Naba Kumar Sarania, a former leader of insurgent group United Liberation Front of Assam who had won the last two times contesting as an independent.
The Kokrajhar seat falls entirely under BTR. Most elected members of UPPL in the BTC are from the Darrang-Udalguri parliamentary seat, which falls partially under the autonomous council. BJP leader Dilip Saikia is seeking re-election from the seat.
“We are fighting the polls as part of the NDA. We believe we will win from both seats. The reason is that the situation in BTR has changed. People from communities are living together in absolute peace. Earlier, they lived under Army and police operations,” Boro said.