BJP Candidate Blocked by Adivasi Youths in Tinsukia Amid Party Rift

The BJP's campaign in Tinsukia hit an unexpected roadblock on Wednesday when local Adivasi youths barred NDA candidate Pulok Gohain from holding a public meeting at Tingrai Tea Estate — a public show of discontent that has exposed simmering tensions within the party's support base ahead of the Assam assembly elections.

The protesters made clear that their anger was not solely directed at Gohain personally, but stemmed from the party's decision to field former two-term MLA and ex-cabinet minister Sanjoy Kishan — a popular Adivasi leader — from the newly constituted Makum LAC instead of Tinsukia.

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Party insiders, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that discontent runs well beyond Wednesday's incident.

They said a deeper resentment prevails among the core supporters of Sanjoy Kishan, and that the dip in Pulok Gohain's public standing is symptomatic of a larger problem that could damage the party's overall perception in the constituency. With polling days away, they stressed that the situation needs to be resolved urgently.

Compounding the BJP's concerns is the candidacy of Jonny Kiron Nayak — a former BJP Tea Morcha leader and ex-Zilla Parishad member — who has switched allegiance to the Jai Bharat Party, a newly formed political outfit focused primarily on the welfare of tea garden workers.

His move carries electoral significance. As a familiar face within Tinsukia's tea community, Nayak's candidacy under a new banner could cut directly into the traditional tea community vote bank that the BJP has long relied upon in the region.

Taken together, the public protest against Gohain and the defection of a prominent Tea Morcha figure paint a picture of a constituency where the BJP's ground support is under strain — and where internal fault lines could prove costly if left unaddressed before polling day.