Assam Assembly election: BJP-AGP calm rebels, but Congress cannot

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: In what can be called as dexterity in defusing rebellion, the BJP-AGP combine has been able to calm their respective rebel candidates in the Assembly election. The Congress, on the contrary, is still grappling with rebellion.

A few Congress stalwarts like former minister Ardhendu Dey, Gautam Dhanowar and a few others have quit the Congress and some of them are bent on fighting this Assembly election as independent candidates against official Congress candidates.

The situation was same for the BJP as well when its Hojai MLA Shiladitya Deb quit the party and decided to fight the election as an independent candidate as the party denied him ticket. However, Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and MP Dillip Saikia rushed to Shiladitya's Hojai residence on Friday to calm him. Now Shiladitya Deb has decided to work for the party. Sarma has told the Hojai MLA that the BJP needs him and will keep him 'with the right position'.

Veteran AGP leader Brindabon Goswami did file his nominations as an independent candidate from Tezpur LAC. The AGP has given its ticket for the LAC to Prithiviraj Rabha, son of Kalaguru Bishnu Rabha. However, Goswami withdrew his nominations on Friday and made it clear that he would work for the party by honouring the wishes of the people of the LAC.

In the same fashion, AGP's Kamalpur MLA Satyabrata Kalita also resigned and decided to fight the poll as an independent candidate. However, he also withdrew his resignation on Friday by honouring the wishes of the people of the LAC.

Meanwhile, Congress candidate Rupjyoti Kurmi breathed a sigh of relief when Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi withdrew his nominations from Mariani LAC. Akhil Gogoi will fight the poll from Sivasagar.

Kurmi said, "It's a great relief for me. Had Akhil Gogoi fought the poll from Mariani, I would have been defeated. Now I'm confident of win."

Also Read: Filing of Nominations for phase-II of the Assam Assembly election end

Also Watch: BJP workers join AJP ahead of Assembly Polls