Guwahati, March 22: Himanta Biswa Sarma on March 21 criticised the opposition’s preparedness for the upcoming Assembly elections in Assam, alleging that the Indian National Congress was not fielding “serious candidates”.
Addressing the media, Sarma claimed that the Congress appeared to be distributing tickets without adequate consideration, suggesting that its candidate lists were being released “to help someone” rather than to mount a strong electoral challenge. He also made a controversial remark stating that “there are no Hindu people in Rajiv Bhawan”.
The Congress on March 20 released its fourth list of seven candidates, taking its total number of nominees to 94 for the 126-member Assembly.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party announced its second list of candidates, naming Jiban Gogoi from Sissiborgaon and Sushri Krishna Saha from Dalgaon. With this, the party’s total number of candidates has reached 90, following an earlier list of 88 names released on March 19.
The state is scheduled to go to the polls on April 9, with counting of votes set for May 4. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is seeking a third consecutive term, while the Congress aims to regain power.
