GUWAHATI: Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday announced that the party top brass, including chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal and state party president, Ranjit Kumar Dass, would kick off the party’s campaign for the panchayat elections from November 26, just about 10 days ahead of the polls.
“As many as 157 gaon panchayat candidates along with 11 anchalik panchayat candidates have won uncontested,” Sarma told reporters at a media conference here.
“Our party will contest for 407 Zila Parishad Council (ZPC) out of 420 ZPC constituencies,” he informed.
The panchayat elections will be conducted in two phases on December 5 and 9 across 26 districts and 14 civil sub-divisions of Assam.
The first phase of the panchayat polls will be held in 16 districts on December 5 while the second phase will be held in 10 districts on December 9, 2018.
Further, Sarma said that, “AGP has criticised us (the BJP in the state). It’s a fact that the party has helped us win the the elections but BJP also has helped AGP.”
The minister further said that BJP would continue to adhere to the alliance. “But we are still a strong party. We will continue to serve and work for our motherland and are ready to face the consequences.”
“A few AGP leaders have gone for an alliance with the Congress. We want to remind them that Congress and AIUDF have not fared well in the panchayat polls,” he said.