Guwahati, March 28: The Assam Congress on Tuesday turned down the invitation of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to join the stakeholders’ consultations here on the ongoing delimitation exercise for the second time in two days, claiming that the apex poll body had not yet responded to three memorandums submitted by the party.
Addressing mediapersons here, Assam PCC president Bhupen Kumar Borah said the ECI had sent an invitation to the party regarding the consultation here for the third time since March 18.
“However, we decided to stay away from the meetings with the poll panel today and yesterday as it had not replied/reacted to the three memorandums submitted after the notification for the delimitation process was issued on January 1, 2023,” Borah said.
“In fact, immediately after the notification for the delimitation exercise was issued, we did not wait for the ECI’s consultations with the stakeholders and instead met the ECI in New Delhi on January 4, 2023, and submitted a memorandum 76 hours after the notification was issued (in January 1, 2023),” Borah said.
The Assam PCC chief further alleged that the delimitation exercise in the state was “pre-determined and politically motivated” even as the ECI, later in a media conference on Tuesday, dismissed the charge.
He however said that the party was prepared to wait and meet the ECI in New Delhi if the apex poll body replied to any of the memorandums submitted.
“We will go to New Delhi if we get a reply on the three memorandums submitted so far. We will wait. The panel does not have to come to Guwahati again,” the Congress leader said.
Borah further expressed satisfaction on the stand of the Opposition parties during the consultations with the ECI.
“Eleven Opposition parties are against the delimitation exercise in Assam and we are happy that the parties have clarified their stand during their meetings with the ECI delegation here. Now, we will reach a consensus soon and a common programme will be made for which we are communicating with the Opposition parties,” he said.
Borah further said that the party had raised serious concerns in the memorandums regarding the Cabinet approval for merger of four districts in Assam with the districts they had been carved out of earlier.
“The reasons cited by the chief minister and the central government in this regard are different as well,” the APCC chief claimed.