Guwahati: Assam’s ‘national hero’ Sarbananda Sonowal, the Union MoS for Sports and Youth Affairs, is set to lead the first BJP-led government in the state as the chief minister after the people of Assam have decided to don saffron this election, results of which were declared on Thursday.
Sonowal has lived upto the task and confidence imposed on him by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah and ensured decimation of Congress led by Tarun Gogoi that has crumbled under the wave of saffronisation and burden of anti-incumbency.
The BJP-led alliance comprising Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) has swept the polls decimating the ruling Congress which had won 78 seats in 2011 Assembly polls.
The landslide victory for the alliance is significant in the sense that two regional parties – AGP and BPF – were key parts of the alliance with a national political party BJP. Both the AGP and the BPF have performed in an outstanding way helping the alliance to cross magic figure of 86 seats in the 126-member Assam Assembly. The BJP had won only five seats in 2011 polls.
The BJP and its allies have swept polls in eastern Assam, western Assam and Barak Valley – the three culturally and ethnically district regions in the state. The results have shown that that the BJP has made inroads into Congress’ bastion among tea tribe voters in eastern Assam tea belt and among Bengali-speaking Hindus in Barak Valley in South Assam.
The BJP-led alliance gained out of division of Muslim votes between Congress and the AIUDF even as some of the Muslim votes went to BJP’s ally AGP.
“I am very grateful to the people of Assam for showering such a generous blessings on the BJP and its allies this election responding to our promise for massive and rapid all round development, corruption free governance, protection of rights of indigenous people of the state, purging the state of illegal migrants etc. We have been humbled by the massive support of the people and will do everything possible to keep all the promises made during the polls,” Sonowal said.
He had paid obeisance to a Shiva Temple at Garmur Monastery in Majuli Island (LAC) where he has contested the polls, before the counting started in the morning. He has trounced Congress minister Rajib Lochan Pegu in Majuli LAC.
Graceful in defeat, Tarun Gogoi said he would humbly accept the mandate of the people and term the verdict a ‘grand success’ for the BJP. Gogoi promised that Congress party would play a robust role of the Opposition in the state Assembly.
Tarun Gogoi though has managed to retain his seat in Titabor LAC, defying the BJP ‘tsunami’ while many of his colleagues including some stalwarts have been made to bite dust including former union minister Paban Singh Ghatowar, Sarat Barkotoky, Pradyut Bardoloi, Bhupen Bora, Bharat Narah, Goutam Roy, Prithvi Majhi, Dr. Ardhendu Dey, etc.
The BJP’s star campaigner in this election and a key strategist Himanta Bishwa Sarmah who have won from Jalukbari for the fourth consecutive term, said the people of Assam had voted against Congress’ tradition of dynastic politics.
“What is Congress, it is a party of Sonia Gandhi and his son Rahul Gandhi and likes of Tarun Gogoi and his son Gaurav Gogoi, Paban Singh Ghatowar and his wife Jibon Tara Ghatowar, Dr. Bhumidhar Barman and his son Diganta Barman etc. Tarun Gogoi would not have seen this day today if he had not brought his son Gaurav Gogoi to politics,” Himanta said.
Once a blue-eyed boy of Tarun Gogoi, the former Congress minister, Sharma, had shifted allegiance to the BJP last year’s September after he was sidelined in Congress for raising banner of revolt against chief minister Tarun Gogoi.
‘Kingmaker’ Ajmal bites the dust
One of the most high-profile losers in this election is president of Muslims-dominated political party, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), Badruddin Ajmal, who has lost to his Congress rival Wajed Ali Choudhury in Salmara South LAC in western Assam.
Ajmal who had announced that he would be the king maker in Assam after Assembly polls of 2016, has been made to bite dust.
