GUWAHATI: The elections to Assam’s 40-seat Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) threw up a fractured mandate.
The Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) won 17 seats, followed by United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) 12, BJP nine, Congress one and Gana Suraksha Party one.
The BJP and the UPPL did not announce any formal alliance but both have indicated of a possible post-poll pact in case of a hung Council.
Late Saturday night, UPPL chief and former student leader Pramod Bodo and some newly-elected members of the party met the state’s Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in Guwahati even as the votes were being counted.
Assam MP and BJP national general secretary Dilip Saikia asserted that the BJP and the UPPL together would form the council.
Despite anti-incumbency and a massive campaign by the BJP, which was led by Sarma, the BPF managed to win 17 seats, just three less than its 2015 tally of 20. The BJP had gone all guns blazing in the polls, billed as “semi-final” ahead of next year’s Assembly elections. It ditched ally BPF and made friendship with UPPL, albeit clandestinely.
The BPF ruled this autonomous council ever since its creation in 2003 as a political solution to Bodo agitation for a separate state.
This was the first election in the BTC since the Centre had signed the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) peace accord with All Bodo Students’ Union and some factions of insurgent group National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) in January this year.
The BTC administers four districts such as Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa and Udalguri, all of them falling under BTR.
Among the prominent winners are BPF Chief Hagrama Mohilary who won from Debergaon seat but lost the Kachugaon seat to UPPL candidate Ukil Mushahary.
Some other prominent winners include Fresh Mushahary, Dhananjoy Basumatary, Saikhong Basumatary, James Basumatary, Paniram Brahma of the BPF, UPPL's Nilot Swargiary, Sanjoy Swargiary, Daibausa Bodo and Ranjit Basumatary and BJP's Bhabendra Bodo, Diganta Barua, Abhiram Mahanayak and Dipak More.
Big losers include outgoing Deputy Chief Executive Member Khampa Borgoyary, Shyam Chundi of the BPF while all four sitting members of the AIUDF lost with the party failing to open an account in the Council polls.
The election to the BTC cover the four districts of Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa and Udalguri which falls under the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).
The poll was earlier scheduled on April four but the Assam State Election Commission had deferred the election to March 20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic after the withdrawal of nomination papers and preparation of the final list of candidates on March 22.
The filing of nominations and scrutiny had been completed by March 20 and the term of the house ended on April 27 with Governor Jagadish Mukhi taking over the administration of the Council.
(With PTI inputs)