Kokrajhar MP Naba Kumar Sarania To Contest LS Polls In Bihar After Failing To Get Clearance In Assam

PATNA: Naba Kumar Sarania, the incumbent MP of the Kokrajhar Lok Sabha seat exclusively reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (ST's), did not give up on his desire to contest the ongoing General Elections.

Popularly known as Hira Sarania, the persistent zeal of the sitting MP sent him packing to Valmiki Nagar in poll-bound Bihar where he is set to contest in the General Elections.

The 55-year old parliamentarian, who formerly happened to be a commander of the banned militant outfit ULFA (United Liberation Front of Assam), filed his nomination papers from Valmiki Nagar on May 6 after the approval of the documents.

As the date of withdrawal of candidature got over on May 9, Sarania finds himself in contention with nine other candidates for the Valmiki Nagar parliamentary constituency which is located approximately 300 km northwest of Patna.

The polling for this seat in the eastern Indian state of Bihar will be held on May 25 during Phase 6.

The decision to contest the elections in Bihar stems from a setback faced by Sarania as his nomination papers for the Kokrajhar constituency in Assam was rejected on the grounds of anomalies in his tribal status and certificates from two different tribes in the past two parliamentary elections.

Despite his efforts to contest the rejection of his nomination papers in the Guwahati High Court, he was unable to secure relief.

Having previously served as an Independent MP for Kokrajhar twice, Sarania had hoped to secure a third term from the same constituency that sent him to the Lok Sabha.

Following his victory in 2019, Sarania also formed a political party going by the name of Gana Suraksha Party (GSP).

Meanwhile, Sarania responded to serious concerns raised about his candidacy in unfamiliar territory by emphasizing that his party is actively engaged in the electoral process in Bihar.

He revealed that the GSP has already fielded candidates in the Gopalganj and Saran constituencies, adding that it is considering fielding candidates on a few seats that will go to polls in the seventh phase.

With his sights set on Valmiki Nagar, Sarania has started campaigning vigorously in this constituency which shares borders with Nepal and Uttar Pradesh.

He has launched an intensive campaign to immerse himself in grassroots outreach efforts and is also engaging with its electorate to get a grip of the situation prevailing on the ground.

It is worth mentioning that Sarania will lock horns against JDU candidate Sunil Kumar and RJD candidate Deepak Yadav.

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