GUWAHATI: There has been a marginal decline in the number of women candidates contesting Lok Sabha elections in Assam, with 14 in the fray as against 16 in the last polls.
The Gauhati parliamentary constituency has the highest number five candidates — BJP’s Queen Ojha, Bobbeeta Sharma of the Congress, Mamoni Sharma of Purvanchal Janata Party (Secular) and independents Junmoni Devi Khaund and Rubi Neog. Two women had made it to the Lok Sabha in 2014 — BJP’s Bijoya Chakravorty from Gauhati and Sushmita Dev of Congress from Silchar.
Chakravorty was denied ticket this time while Dev has been re-nominated from her constituency. The Congress has put up two candidates, one less than in 2014, and the BJP and its alliance partner BPF one each. All India Trinamool Congress and SUCI (Communist) have nominated two women candidates each while National Peoples’ Party (NPP), Voters Party International and Purvanchal Janata Party (Secular) have one candidate each. Four independents are also contesting.
Queen Ojha said her party has given the Gauhati seat to women on several occasions and expressed gratitude to the BJP leadership. Ojha said her party’s manifesto promises 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies and in the recently-concluded panchayat elections, many women from the party were elected.
Congress candidate, on the other hand, from Gauhati, Sharma, said her party is committed to bring in 33 per cent reservation in Parliament and state assemblies as promised in its manifesto.
Assam has so far sent only 17 women candidates to the Lok Sabha since the first General Elections in 1952. The highest number of 16 women candidates are known to have contested in 2014. (PTI)
