Assam is going for polls on April 9. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) termed the Assembly election as a sacred mandate for shielding heritage of Assam from convert, encroachment and silent aggression of Bangladeshi origin Muslims.
“In the forthcoming Assembly elections, the people of Assam will undoubtedly draw a comparison between 60 years of Congress rule and mere 10 years of development under the BJP-led NDA Government. In terms of ensuring holistic welfare and comprehensive development of the people of Assam, the past decade of BJP governance will be etched in history as truly remarkable. Over these ten years, the Government has delivered development far beyond what the people had ever imagined. There was once a widely circulated notion in Assam that ‘without agitation, Assam receives nothing, and the Centre treats Assam with stepmotherly neglect.’ However, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the NDA Government at the Centre, over the past 12 years, has extended record-breaking financial assistance to Assam for development. Union Ministers, including the Prime Minister and the Home Minister, have frequently visited Assam, inaugurating new projects each time, thereby transforming the very map of development in the State.”
Cementing Connectivity
At one point in time, the National Highways of Assam were infamously described by the media as “death traps.” Today, under BJP governance, these highways are capable of facilitating emergency landings of aircraft. In the past ten years, a total of 65,000 kilometres of roads have been constructed, significantly strengthening connectivity across the State. Over the last five years, as many as 1,330 bridges have been built in Assam. On March 13, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for a high-speed corridor project in Silchar, involving an investment of Rs 22,864 crore, thereby ushering in a new era of connectivity in the North East. During the BJP regime, nine bridges over the Brahmaputra River have already been completed. Construction of an elevated corridor in Kaziranga, with an investment of Rs 6,950 crore, has commenced. Mega infrastructure projects such as the Ring Road and the tunnel connecting Gohpur to Numaligarh, once beyond imagination, are now becoming a reality under this Government. In the last decade, Assam’s healthcare sector has witnessed a transformative revolution. The Government has completed the construction of 15 medical colleges, and premier institutions like AIIMS have been established in the State. Recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stones for multiple critical healthcare projects worth Rs 2,092 crore. Additionally, successful heart surgeries of 16,500 children have brought smiles to countless families across Assam. The BJP Government has also made significant strides in addressing the long-standing issue of floods. Over the past five years, more than 2,000 kilometres of embankments have been constructed. During last year’s floods, embankments breached at only three locations across the State, a stark contrast to earlier times when embankments across districts would collapse annually, necessitating repeated repairs. Under Mission Basundhara, land pattas have been granted to 4,50,000 indigenous families of Assam. Ending a deprivation that persisted for over 200 years, the BJP Government has successfully delivered land rights to tea garden workers, an achievement of historic significance. Not to forget, the Emergency Landing Facility (ELF) of Indian Air Force (IAF) in Moran on National Highway 127 in Dibrugarh district inaugurated by PM Modi on February 14 is just another feather in the development cap of the double engine government in Assam. The 4.2 kilometers stripe is a showcase of India’s growing air power and political will of the BJP Government on national security. Once a broken road leading to Dibrugarh city from Moran and neighbouring areas is now called a ‘Rafale Road’ by the locals.
Miya Supremacist
In contrast to the development politics of BJP and NDA, the Congress party in Assam has mortgaged the cultural identity of the Assamese society to appease the Miya-Muslims, alleged the ruling BJP. A BJP leader disclosed that Congress party entered the electoral battlefield after mortgaging Assam’s pride and civilisational dignity at the altar of Miya appeasement. The speeches delivered by its leaders and the statements issued before the media equating Namghar (Vaishnavite spiritual place established by Guru Sankardev) with mosques stand as irrefutable testimony to this disturbing reality. By publicly declaring that encroachers evicted from government land and forest reserves would be reinstated in their original locations, the Congress has already surrendered itself politically before Miya supremacist forces. Under the leadership of Gaurav Gogoi, the Congress is deploying its entire political machinery to establish Miya dominance within the socio-cultural fabric of Assam. By invoking the slogan of a “New Greater Assam,” the Congress has, in effect, conceded ideological ground to Miya hegemony. In contrast, the Bharatiya Janata Party, under the resolute leadership of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, has undertaken a solemn resolve to liberate five lakh bighas of land from the clutches of illegal encroachers within the next five years. Already, 1.5 lakh bighas have been cleared of unlawful occupation, setting an unprecedented national benchmark in decisive governance. BJP further alleged that the Congress party has begun prioritizing Miya political dominance over national integrity and civilizational duty.
Consequently, the party’s entire campaign narrative has been crafted in disregard of the honour and collective self-respect of the nation and the Assamese people. During its tenure, vast stretches of Satras, forest reserves, and indigenous ancestral lands were allegedly encroached upon. The present government led by Himanta Biswa Sarma has initiated firm eviction drives to restore these lands and has simultaneously undertaken measures to rehabilitate indigenous communities. However, under Gaurav Gogoi’s leadership, the Congress has not only opposed these corrective measures but has also promised to reinstate the evicted encroachers. Even their campaign song openly protests against eviction, reinforcing this ideological stance. Various campaign materials and manifestos released by the Congress allegedly contain assurances aimed at appeasing Miya constituencies. These developments conclusively demonstrate the Congress party’s political capitulation before Miya supremacist forces. Such conduct poses a grave political challenge to Assam and the Assamese people. By opposing eviction drives, the Congress has disregarded the emotional anguish of indigenous sons of the soil.
Attempting to institutionalise Miya political dominance in Assam through its election campaign song, to equate the sacred “Namghar”,the spiritual nucleus of Assamese identity,with a mosque, calling it a profound insult to Assam’s socio-cultural ethos. Congress has shown no hesitation in handing over Assam’s language, culture, politics, and economy into the hands of Miya forces. Under the leadership of Gaurav Gogoi, and in association with Rakibul Hussain, Nurul Huda, Zakir Hussain Sikdar, and Rekibuddin Ahmed, the party has entered the electoral fray positioning itself in opposition to indigenous rights and identity. Interestingly, Gaurav Gogoi who is contesting the assembly election for the first time from Jorhat constituency visited a Mosque to offer Namaz before filling his nomination.
The Equation
After decades, Assam will go for a single phase election in 2026. Polls for all 126 seats will be held on April 9, just before the Rongali Bihu, the biggest festival in Assam. BJP and its alliance partners are looking for maximum seats, which is the first Assembly election after the delimitation of constituencies in 2023. While BJP is contesting in 90 seats its alliance partner Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) is fighting in 26 seats. In the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), NDA alliance partner – Bodoland People’s Party (BPF) – is contesting in 11 seats. On the other hand, Congress party, which is contesting in over 100 seats, is primarily focusing on minority dominated seats. After delimitation, Assam has got around 22 seats which are basically Miya-Muslim dominated. As incumbent CM, Himanta Biswa Sarma said that there will be a BJP Tsunami this time in Assam and Congress will be reduced to the only Miya-dominated seats. BJP is confident of getting maximum support from the Assamese Hindu constituencies based on its tremendous development works in the last 10 years and will be able to strike a hat-trick of wins. On the other hand, with the quitting of key leaders ahead of the election and very late seat adjustment with alliance partners, the Congress party is surely on the backfoot compared to BJP.
Safety of Roti, Beti & Mati
On March 14, in his election rally in Assam, PM Narendra Modi alleged that the Congress party has committed yet another grave sin—one that has emerged as a monumental threat to the security of both the nation and Assam. It has jeopardised the safety of all three vital elements: ‘Roti’ (livelihood), ‘Beti’ (daughters), and ‘Mati’ (land). The Congress party has always extended a helping hand to infiltrators—a stance it maintains to this very day. For decades, the Congress denied the indigenous inhabitants of this region even the basic legal documents pertaining to their land. The Congress handed over vast tracts of tribal land to infiltrators, PM Modi stated. Mentioning a few districts of Assam where indigenous people have become minority, PM Modi said, “The situation was particularly dire in districts such as Dhubri and Goalpara. Consequently, the demographic balance in Bodoland was being disrupted, and a crisis began to engulf society. I take great satisfaction in noting that, under the leadership of Hemanta ji, a massive campaign is currently underway in Assam to reclaim land from the clutches of infiltrators. Furthermore, the BJP-NDA Government here has successfully provided legal land documents to the indigenous people of Assam. I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to the tribal community for their enthusiastic and wholehearted support in this endeavor. The PM further urged people of Assam to punish the Congress party for their unforgivable sins committed during their regime in Assam and across India in the upcoming assembly election. “There is another reality regarding the Congress: it is a shop of false promises. And along with every false promise, it offers four “super-lies” as a bonus gift. This is because the Congress has absolutely no intention of ever fulfilling those promises”, PM Modi added.
