GUWAHATI, May 3: After suffering defeat in the Assam Assembly elections, the Indian National Congress on Monday graciously accepted the people’s mandate and thanked the electorate for giving the party-led Mahajot the chance to play the role of a “strong Opposition” in the next five years.
Addressing reporters here, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary, in-charge of Assam, Jitendra Singh said, “We respectfully accept the mandate given by the people of Assam and congratulate all the successful candidates and parties. I take this opportunity to thank the people of Assam who voted for Congress and reposed their faith in the party’s ideology.”
“We are given the role of a responsible and strong Opposition with about 50 seats in the house of 126. We shall strive to do our duty in the best interest of the people of Assam. We will continue to voice the challenges being faced by the people of Assam and will always fight for their rights,” Singh said.
“I also want to thank the workers and leaders of the Congress party in each constituency who worked tirelessly during this election. In terms of vote share, the gap between the two alliances is not very big,” he said.
The Congress leader further admitted the need for an analysis of the poll outcome to do better in future elections.
In terms of the seats, the tally of the Congress went up by three (from 26 in 2016 to 29 now). The party lost seven seats by a margin of less than 5,000 votes.
“AIUDF, BPF and the Left parties remain our valued allies and we would continue to fight for the welfare of the people,” Singh said.
The AICC general secretary however said that the newly-formed regional parties such as Assam Jatiya Parishad and Raijor Dal “apparently helped the BJP consolidate its position in Upper Assam region.”
“AJP and Raijor Dal, which were formed out of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act movement, need to do some soul searching on how they ended up helping the very forces that they were seeking to oppose,” he said.
The Congress leader further hoped that the BJP would fulfill its electoral promises – more so the promise to provide jobs and employment opportunities.
“We hope that the financial support schemes of the government will continue and were not just initiatives to get people’s votes. We sincerely hope that the BJP government will continue to provide financial aid to the tea garden workers after the elections. We urge the government to increase their wages so that they can live a life of dignity,” he said.
Singh further said that the Congress would also assist the government positively in mitigating the corona pandemic challenge faced by the people of the state.
“Several people of Assam residing outside the state have been victims of corona pandemic and many more are afflicted and need urgent help. The government of Assam should have the database of people residing outside Assam in different states who are affected by the virus and extend all help they can from here,” he added.