It was inevitable that Himanta Biswa Sarma, with his growing clout within the BJP, has outwitted Sarbananda Sonowal and taken the chief minister’s chair. A sense of uncertainty was evident even at the start of the assembly poll campaign in Assam when the BJP made it clear it would decide on the name for the next CM after the polls. Yet, things were not as smooth as it should have been which is evident from the delay in the zeroing in on the name. With word coming from Delhi in support of Sarma in the given situation, his selection was smooth; the outgoing CM proposing Sarma’s name making him the unanimous choice. The talks in Delhi also held out hope for Sonawal; that he would not be the loser and would return to the Union Council of Ministers. Assam’s tenuous political and social situations are unique and need to be handled with care. Congress leader Tarun Gogoi has exited from the scene and the present party campaign perhaps felt his absence. Priyanka Gandhi has campaigned extensively and it is disappointing for her and the Congress Party that the fortunes of the grand old party could not be revived even with the heft provided by the induction of a regional party from the NDA side and support from other regional outfits.
With former Congressman Sarma taking charge, there could be more erosions from the Congress to the BJP. Otherwise, the BJP-led NDA alliance’s fortunes remained tight at 60 this time too in a house of 126, with allies AGP winning nine seats and UPPL getting six seats. This formed a comfortable majority as of now and for future too as the rival side remains weak. The failure to improve the strength of the BJP also came as a disadvantage to Sonowal vis-à-vis pressing his claim for a second term as CM. It was time the party changed the leader. Assam past its student union uprising is increasingly encouraging the nationalist forces in recent years. So is the scene with the sister states too, helping in the cause of national integration that is still a long-drawn process considering the ground realities here. Sarma has helped the BJP spread its wings in the North-East, where the Congress party left its eminent space in state after state in a steady downslide. Sarma might further power such a push. The communal equations in Assam also require close watch in view of the sway of multiple interests there. The governance of Assam will not be an easy task for any chief minister.
