GUWAHATI: Pradyut Bordoloi, a two-term MP from Assam who recently joined the BJP, has alleged that he felt neglected, isolated, and unwelcome in the Congress.
A Congress member for more than five decades and chairman of the manifesto committee for the Assam Assembly polls, Bordoloi is contesting the state election on a BJP ticket from Dispur.
In an interview with PTI, Bordoloi said a succession of grievances had built up, possibly starting during the Congress organisational election in 2022. He claimed he faced humiliation within the party and was sidelined after supporting Shashi Tharoor's candidature for the post of party president.
"A few MPs, such as Shashi Tharoor, demanded organisational elections to strengthen democracy within the Congress. Initially, there was a move for a consensus candidate. When elections were finally held, Shashi Tharoor wanted to contest. I was the proposer for his candidature and campaigned extensively," he said.
Mallikarjun Kharge won the elections and became Congress president.
"After that, I felt there was a systematic action against me, though Kharge was always magnanimous and accepted me. Sonia Gandhi, who has been a mother figure to me, also never discriminated against me," Bordoloi said.
He alleged that it was the second-rung leadership in the Congress that "systematically kept him aside, and it was very palpable".
"When I wanted to participate in debates in the Lok Sabha – which are decided within the party – I never got a chance. If at all they gave me a chance, my name would be at the bottom of the list, leaving only two minutes to speak," he said, claiming these were not isolated incidents but systematic.
"I was feeling useless. What is the use of being an MP if I could not participate meaningfully, especially in taking up the cudgel on behalf of my constituency in Assam or the northeast region?" Bordoloi added.
He said the final straw came during the Panchayat elections in 2025, when hooded miscreants attacked his car and attempted to kill him with iron rods. Investigations later revealed the attack was orchestrated by a sitting Congress MLA from his constituency.
Bordoloi claimed that despite alerting the state Congress president and senior leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi, the MLA was still allowed to travel for the party’s screening process. "I felt extremely humiliated and disappointed that the state unit chief failed to defend me, making me feel as if I had levelled false allegations to settle a score," he said.
Commenting on his relationship with Gaurav Gogoi, Bordoloi said he had nothing personal against him but felt a trust deficit. "If I raise matters about my constituency and they are dismissed, while I am made to feel as if I am making irresponsible and fabricated claims, it becomes untenable," he added.
Regarding his decision to join the BJP, Bordoloi said the party leadership approached him, and he insisted on being accorded dignity and self-respect. He was subsequently offered the Dispur seat.
Addressing concerns that his nomination faced internal opposition, Bordoloi said, "When the party leadership announced my candidature, there is bound to be some heartburn and grievances. I am sympathetic to that. The BJP has accepted me and is guiding and helping me."
Pradyut Bordoloi’s son, Prateek Bordoloi, decided not to contest the Assembly polls as a Congress nominee from the Margherita seat following his father’s exit from the party. Bordoloi clarified that he did not influence his son’s political decisions.
Pradyut Bordoloi was inducted into the BJP in the presence of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and other party leaders in Delhi on 18 March, weeks after former Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah joined the ruling party.