Jharkhand Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Co-operative Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey launched a sharp attack on the BJP government in Assam on Monday, accusing Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's administration of repeatedly breaking promises made to tea garden workers.
Speaking to reporters in Dibrugarh, Tirkey cited two specific pledges she said the BJP had failed to honour.
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"The BJP promised to provide a daily wage of Rs 351 to tea garden workers during the previous election, but failed," she said. "BJP also promised to give land pattas to tea garden workers, but betrayed them. In the name of land pattas, only papers were given."
The remarks zeroed in on what has become a central issue in Upper Assam's tea belt constituencies, where the Adivasi and tea tribe community holds significant electoral influence across multiple seats.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, which is allied with Congress at the Centre and in Jharkhand, is contesting 21 of Assam's 126 assembly constituencies after seat-sharing negotiations broke down.
JMM's campaign in Assam is focused squarely on the tea garden belt of Upper Assam. Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has been actively participating in election rallies across the region, pitching JMM as the voice of tea workers and the broader Adivasi community in the state legislature.