Assam: Revolt erupts as BJP names Nihar Ranjan as Dholai candidate

A correspondent 

Silchar: As the BJP picked up Nihar Ranjan Das as the candidate for the Dholai bye election, the ruling party faced a ‘revolt’ following the resignation of Amiyo Kanti Das, another aspirant. Amiyo Kanti, a veteran saffron brigade face openly blamed the local MP Parimal Suklabaidya as he said the BJP had been derailed from its ideal. On the other hand, Nihar Ranjan said, he was grateful to the leadership as they had rewarded his dedication for the party. Suklabaidya said, the party had picked up the candidate they thought the most suitable. “In BJP, party comes first, candidate or individual second. All the party workers would ensure the victory of the BJP candidate”, Suklabaidya, whose Lok Sabha berth had prompted the bye election in Dholai, said. 

Soon after the name of Nihar Ranjan was announced as party candidate on Saturday night, Amiyo Kanti sent his resignation letter to the district BJP president Bimolendu Roy. On Sunday, Amiyo Kanti said, he did never figure in the good book of Parimal Suklabaidya. “I am a dedicated Sangh karyakarta for whom nation comes first. But in today’s BJP this ideology had completely perished and ‘yes boss’ culture had swept the party”, Amiyo Kanti said. He further added that Suklabaidya had chosen a candidate who had no link with Dholai, an outsider. Citing Sangha ideologue Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, Amiyo Kanti, who was the vice president of the district BJP, vowed to reciprocate the treachery he had been subjected to with appropriate resistance. However Amiyo Kanti avoided a direct answer to the query about the chances of throwing himself as an independent candidate. Amiyo Kanti, who joined the BJP in 1989, had earlier sought nomination for Dholai reserved seat in 2016 and 2021, but since Parimal Suklabaidya was there, he had to wait. “I am a local resident of Dholai. But only because the reason that someone does not like me, the party had chosen an outsider. Is this BJP for which I have sacrificed my entire career”, Amiyo Kanti added. 

Party insiders hinted that, Amiyo Kanti’s name was almost final in the state BJP but in the last leg, Nihar Ranjan, an advocate, snatched the ticket with the support of Suklabaidya.

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