GUWAHATI, March 19: The central leadership of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday released a list of 88 candidates for the upcoming Assam Legislative Assembly elections, with chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma yet again contesting from the party’s stronghold, Jalukbari constituency.
Notably, BJP is set to contest 89 constituencies in the Assembly elections, with the candidate for one seat is yet to be announced.
Ministers Chandramohan Patowary will contest from Tihu constituency; Ranjeet Kumar Dass from Bhowanipur-Sorbhog; minister Ajanta Neog from Golaghat; Prasanta Phukan from Dibrugarh; Pijush Hazarika will yet again contest from Jagiroad constituency, Jayantamalla Baruah from Nalbari and Bimal Borah from Tingkhong constituency – a move indicative of the continuity in the party’s leadership structure.
Two veteran leaders who exited the Congress and joined the ruling party – Bhupen Kumar Borah and Pradyut Bordoloi – have been given key tickets – a move indicative of the BJP’s focus on expanding its leadership base by inducting experienced figures from rival parties.
Borah, a former two-term MLA and Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president from 2021 to 2025, will contest from Bihpuria — a seat he has held for a decade.
Bordoloi, a sitting Lok Sabha MP from Nagaon, has been given the ticket for the prestigious urban constituency of Dispur.
Among other key seats, Rajya Sabha MP Rameswar Teli will contest from Duliajan; former MP Rajdeep Roy has been given a ticket to contest Silchar; Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha from Katigorah; Tuliram Ronghang from Rongkhang (ST); former Assam Assembly Speaker Hitendranath Goswami has been fielded in Jorhat; Rupjyoti Kurmi from Mariani; Sushanta Buragohain from Demow while Biswajit Phukan has again been given a ticket to contest Sarupathar.
The list also features women candidates such as Rupali Langthasa from Haflong constituency, who replaces minister Nandita Gorlosa; while Madhavi Das will enter the fray from Birsing-Jarua, Jyotsna Kalita from Chamaria; Niso Terangpi from Diphu (ST) and Nilima Devi from Mangaldai.
In the tea garden belt and tribal-dominated constituencies, the party has retained several familiar faces while also introducing new candidates, a move seen as an effort to address evolving socio-economic concerns in these regions.
