GUWAHATI: Four Assam parties – Congress, CPI(M), All Party Hill Leaders’ Conference and Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP – have come together to defeat the ruling BJP in the Assembly elections, expected in April.
The much-talked-about regional party Raijor Dal, however, is not a part of the Opposition front, at least for now. It could not reach an understanding with the Congress on the seat-sharing deal.
Led by activist-turned-politician Akhil Gogoi, the Raijor Dal recently slammed the Congress for “unilaterally” releasing its first list of 42 candidates and later, released its first list of 11 candidates.
When state Congress president Gaurav Gogoi was on Friday asked at a joint press conference about the Raijor Dal’s participation in the Opposition front, he avoided a direct reply.
“We want to expand our platform. As we embark on this journey, we welcome everybody,” Gogoi, also the Jorhat MP, said.
He as well as AJP chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi made a blistering attack on the BJP for its alleged understanding with the AIUDF which is led by former MP and perfume baron Maulana Badruddin Ajmal. The AIUDF is influential in the constituencies dominated by Bengali-speaking Muslims, known by the pejorative term “Miyas” in the state.
“You will soon hear the BJP say that the AIUDF is their friend, not enemy. The people of Assam are watching everything. They have seen how our platform is being built. It will become stronger in the coming days,” Gogoi said.
He further stated that although the ideologies of the four parties are not the same, yet they came together for a greater cause.
“We want to do value-based politics. On the other side, there are those who like to do opportunistic politics. People will decide who they will go with,” he added.
Lurinjyoti called the AIUDF the ‘B team’ of the BJP. Attacking the ruling party, he said that the BJP-led NDA cannot survive without the AIUDF’s oxygen.
“The Chief Minister (Himanta Biswa Sarma) has all along indulged in communal politics. Those unacceptable to them have now become acceptable. The BJP survived all these years in Assam only because of the AIUDF. It was proven yesterday,” the AJP chief said.
The Opposition parties intensified their attack on the BJP after three suspended AIUDF legislators had on Thursday backed the nomination of NDA candidate Pramod Boro for a Rajya Sabha seat.
Meanwhile, BJP ally United People’s Party Liberal, which Boro heads, has decided to contest the Assembly polls on its own. It will contest all 15 seats in the Bodoland Territorial Region.
The BJP, however, will have a seat-sharing pact with the Bodoland People’s Front which rules the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council.