Sports, March 24: Former India football captain Bhaichung Bhutia has said the upcoming Assam Assembly elections are expected to be closely contested, citing the performance of both the current and previous state governments.
Speaking to reporters, Bhutia remarked that the electoral battle “might be very competitive,” noting that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has undertaken significant development work. He also acknowledged the contributions of former chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, stating that earlier administrations had also delivered on key fronts.
His comments come as the Bharatiya Janata Party continues to firm up its electoral strategy. The party recently released its second list of candidates, naming Jiban Gogoi from Sissiborgaon and Sushri Krishna Saha from Dalgaon. With this, the BJP has announced candidates for 90 constituencies, following its initial list of 88 candidates released earlier.
The first list featured several high-profile entrants from the Congress. Pradyut Bordoloi has been fielded from Dispur after switching sides, while former Assam Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah has been nominated from Bihpuria.
Sarma is set to seek re-election from his stronghold Jalukbari constituency. The BJP is contesting the polls in alliance with the Asom Gana Parishad and the Bodoland People’s Front as part of the NDA.
On the other hand, the Congress is contesting 100 of the 126 seats and has formed an alliance with parties including the Assam Jatiya Parishad, Raijor Dal, CPI(M), CPI(ML) and the All Party Hill Leaders Conference, with Raijor Dal set to contest 11 seats.
Polling for all constituencies is scheduled for April 9, with counting to take place on May 4. The BJP-led alliance is aiming for a third consecutive term, while the opposition bloc is attempting to regain ground after a weak performance in the 2021 elections, where the NDA secured 75 seats, including 60 by the BJP, while the Congress-led alliance managed 16 seats.
