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Tag: Assam Jatiya Parishad

  • Congress to leave one seat each to AJP, Raijor Dal in Assam bypolls

    By PTI

    GUWAHATI: The Assam Congress on Friday announced that it will contest four out of the six seats where by-poll will take place in the coming months and left one seat each to Raijor Dal (RD) and Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP).

    The two regional parties, which had formed an alliance and contested the March-April Assembly election separately from the Congress-led grouping, have not finalised their decision to accept the offer of the grand old party.

    “Our three different committees met today and arrived at a decision to put up a united opposition candidate in each constituency to defeat the communal BJP. So Congress will fight in four seats,” Assam Congress President Bhupen Borah told PTI.

    The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee has decided to offer one seat each to AJP and RD, he added.

    Asked which seats will be offered to the two regional parties, Borah said it will be finalised once the two parties accept Congress’ offer.

    By-election will take place in Thowra, Mariani, Bhabanipur, Tamulpur and Gossaigaon on October 30.

    The Majuli seat is also vacant but the by-poll in it will not be held this time as its MLA, union minister Sarbananda Sonowal resigned from the Assembly just hours after the poll schedule was announced by the Election Commission.

    Thowra and Mariani seats were bagged by Congress during the Assembly poll but the MLAs resigned and joined the ruling BJP.

    A senior APCC leader had said on Thursday that the party is willing to leave the Majuli or Mariani seat to AJP.

    RD had announced on Wednesday that it will contest Thowra and Mariani seats and announced the names of both the candidates.

    Meanwhile, CPI, which was a part of the Congress-led Grand Alliance during the Assembly poll, has announced fielding Krishna Gogoi from Thowra.

    The Congress, which was in power for 15 years in Assam since 2001, had formed a ‘Grand Alliance’ with AIUDF, BPF, CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML), Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM), RJD, Adivasi National Party (ANP) and Jimochayan (Deori) Peoples Party (JPP) to fight against the BJP-led NDA in the Assembly election this year.

    In the 126-member Assam Assembly, the BJP’s strength at present is 59.

    The ruling allies — the AGP has nine and UPPL has five MLAs, while the Congress’ strength is 27, AIUDF has 15 members, BPF has three and CPI(M) has one MLAs.

    There is one Independent MLA.

  • AJP to approach opposition parties for consensus candidates in Assam by-polls

    By PTI

    GUWAHATI: The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) on Thursday decided to approach “anti-BJP and secular” parties to come together and field consensus candidates for the October 30 by-poll to five assembly seats in the state.

    The regional party, which had debuted before the Assembly election earlier this year, appealed to the Opposition parties to come together to keep the ruling BJP-led alliance at bay in the by-poll.

    AJP general secretary Jagdish Bhuyan in a release said the party’s decision to approach the Opposition parties for a consensus candidate in the by-election was affirmed in its political affairs committee meeting on Thursday.

    “Though we are a regional party, it is imperative for us to work together with all anti-BJP, non-communal forces to keep BJP at bay for the sake of upholding the democratic set up and traditions of our country,” he said.

    “The BJP government has pushed the prices of essential items and unemployment to an all time high and is selling our assets to the capitalists. It is the need of the hour for anti-BJP secular forces to unite,” Bhuyan said.

    AJP has formed committees which will hold talks with all anti-BJP and non-communal parties, including the Congress, to field consensus candidates in the by-poll, he said.

    A high-level meeting was held earlier in the day between Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhupen Borah and AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi and general secretary Jagadish Bhuyan.

    “The Congress is willing to leave one seat to AJP as per its request to put up common candidates in the upcoming by-poll in Assam. Though it is yet to be finalised, we are ready to leave the Majuli seat to them,” a senior APCC leader said on condition of anonymity.

    By-election will take place in Thowra, Mariani, Bhabanipur, Tamulpur and Gossaigaon on October 30.

    The Majuli seat is also vacant, but the by-poll in it will not be held this time round as its representative, Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal resigned from the state Assembly only hours after the poll schedule was announced by the Election Commission.

    Thowra and Mariani seats were bagged by Congress during the Assembly poll, while Bhabanipur had gone in AIUDF’s kitty.

    But the MLAs resigned and joined the ruling BJP.

    By-poll in Gossaigoan and Tamulpur is being held after the death of their MLAs.

    Gossaigaon was won by UPPL and Tamulpur by BPF in the Assembly election.

    The AJP and Raijor Dal had fought the state poll as a ‘regional alliance’ and had refrained from joining the Congress-led Grand Alliance’ comprising AIUDF, BPF, CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML), Anchalik Gana Morcha, RJD, Adivasi National Party and Jimochayan (Deori) Peoples Party.

    In the 126-member Assam Assembly, the BJP’s strength at present is 59.

    The ruling allies — the AGP has nine and UPPL five MLAs.

    The Congress’ strength is 27, while AIUDF has 15 members, BPF three and CPI(M) has one.

    There is one Independent MLA also.

  • State by-passing crucial clause of 1985 Accord while bringing in CAA: Assam Jatiya Parishad

    By PTI

    GUWAHATI: The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) on Tuesday accused the Assam government of side-lining the “crucial” clause 5 of the Assam Accord, which deals with cut-off date for identification of illegal foreigners by briniging in the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).

    AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi and general secretary Jagdish Bhuyan, in a press statement, alleged that the BJP party-led government was working to reduce the Assamese people to a minority status in their own state in order to appease “foreigners” who will be turned into voters through provisions of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

    “Clause 5 of the Accord specifies the cut-off date for identifying foreigners. But it will become irrelevant when the CAA is implemented. It will tantamount to killing the Assam Accord and its spirit,” they said. This vital clause has been ignored by the government when it recently formed a committee to implement the Accord, they added.

    The state government had on September 7 announced a committee with its ministers and representatives of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), which was a signatory of the Accord as member to prepare a roadmap within three months to implement the Assam Accord.

    The Chief Minister’s Office in a statement the same day had said that the meeting decided to prepare an “implementation framework to implement the provisions of Assam Accord with special reference to Clause 6,7, 9 and 10”.

    Clause 5 of the Accord sets March 25, 1971, as the cut-off date for detecting and deporting illegal aliens from Assam.

    The AJP alleges that the contentious CAA violates the Assam Accord as it seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who came to India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after five years of residence here.

    The AJP leaders also alleged the percentage of Assamese-speaking population will decreased by 10 per cent over a 20 year period. “The percentage of Assamese-speaking population in Assam was 47 per cent as per 2011 Census. It is predicted to come down to 37 per cent by 2031. Once the Assamese-speaking population becomes a minority, it will be no good trying to protect their identity,” they said.

    They demanded action from the government in the form of proper implementation of clause 6, which deals with Constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards to protect, preserve and promote the culture, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people, before it is too late.

    The AJP leaders also said the recommendations of the Justice Biplab Kumar Sarma-led Committee on implementation of clause 6 are being ignored by the government.

    On February 25 last year, the Justice Sarma-led High-Level Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs had submitted its report to the then Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal for handing it over to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, but no action has been taken on it yet.

    Gogoi and Bhuyan also alleged that the BJP party has grabbed power by playing communal politics but is keeping mum on the matter of the Assamese speakers being on the verge of losing their mother tongue.

    Pledging intensified agitations to protect the identity of the Assamese people, the AJP leaders said the ‘Jatiya Garjan’ programme observed by the party and its supporters across the state on Tuesday was a part of this plan.

  • Congress, AJP hold talks for common Opposition candidates in Assam bypolls

    By PTI

    GUWAHATI: Assam’s opposition parties Congress and AJP on Monday held discussions for putting up common candidates against the ruling BJP-led alliance in the assembly by-elections in five seats.

    Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) vice presidents Shamsher Singh and Kamal Nayan Choudhury visited state Congress chief Bhupen Bora at his residence and discussed the proposal.

    “The AJP proposed giving common candidates in all the seats going for the bypolls. We respect the proposal and will discuss it at the appropriate level,” state Congress working president Jakir Hussain Sikdar told PTI.

    Sikdar, who was also present during the talks, said that the Congress is always ready to work with all the anti-BJP forces in the state.

    “We cannot say at this stage that an alliance is being cemented between the Congress and the AJP. A political roadmap will have to be chalked out for that,” he said.

    AJP spokesperson Ziaur Rahman said that the party’s central executive committee had on July 16 passed a resolution for common opposition candidates against the BJP in the bypolls, the schedule of which is yet to be announced.

    “We informed the Congress about our resolution during the second round of discussions today. Earlier, another state Congress working president Rana Goswami had discussed the issue with AJP general secretary Jagadish Bhuyan,” Rahman said.

    The Congress and Akhil Gogoi-led Raijor Dal had held a discussion on August 8 to evaluate possibilities on forming an alliance for the bypolls.

    AJP and Raijor Dal had formed a ‘Regional Alliance’, which was not part of the Congress-led ‘Grand Alliance’ in the assembly election this year.

    The Raijor Dal won one seat, while AJP drew a blank.

    Before the assembly polls, both the groupings had called for establishing a united platform of all opposition parties but the ‘Regional Alliance’ had shied away from joining the ‘Grand Alliance’ due to the presence of All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) in it.

    The Congress, which was in power for 15 years in Assam since 2001, formed the ‘Grand Alliance’ with AIUDF, BPF, CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML), Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM), RJD, Adivasi National Party (ANP) and Jimochayan (Deori) Peoples Party (JPP).

    In the 126-member Assam Assembly, the BJP bagged 60 seats, while its allies AGP won nine and UPPL six.

    In the opposition camp, the Congress won 29, AIUDF 16, BPF four and CPI(M) cornered one seat.

    Raijor Dal won one seat as an Independent.

    As per the seat arrangements of assembly at present, byelections will take place in five seats.

    One MLA each of United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) and Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) has died, while two Congress legislators have resigned to join the BJP.

    Former chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who joined the Union Cabinet as a minister, is yet to submit his resignation paper in the assembly, but is likely to do so in the coming days.

  • Police encounters ploy to protect top criminals: Assam Jatiya Parishad

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) on Friday alleged that the surge in encounters in Assam was a ploy to “silence” lower-rung criminals to protect their bosses running illegal syndicates, including politicians and top police officers.

    The chief minister’s sanction to make encounters the “pattern” in handling fleeing criminals, whose numbers have suddenly spiked, has led to doubts on the actual motives of these incidents, the party further alleged.

    Addressing a press conference here, AJP general secretary Jagadish Bhuyan questioned, “Under the guise of fighting crime, are people being ‘silenced’ and terror created in their minds to protect the top criminals?” More than a dozen suspected militants and criminals have been shot dead in the state since May as they reportedly tried to escape from custody, while several others, including rape accused, and suspected cattle smugglers, have been injured, the AJP leader claimed.

    Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, at a meeting on July 5 with Officers In-Charge of police stations across the state, had said that shooting at criminals “should be the pattern” if they attempt to escape from custody or try to snatch arms from on-duty personnel and fire at them.

    Bhuyan further alleged that criminal rackets and syndicates in the state have been running for several years in connivance with a section of politicians and police officers, and the encounters could be to “protect” those involved in these crimes.

    Referring to the operations against cattle smuggling, Bhuyan said, the government should institute an inquiry into the alleged Rs 60,000 crore illegal dealings in the syndicate in the last five years. He pointed that the incumbent chief minister has himself claimed that Rs 1,000 crore illegal transactions happen per month in the cattle smuggling syndicate.

    The BJP had led a coalition government in the state in the last five years and had retained power in this years state polls, with Sarma replacing Sarbananda Sonowal as the chief minister. “How can we be sure that those involved in cattle smuggling will not be killed in an encounter to erase all evidence?” Bhuyan questioned.

    He also expressed apprehension that with the encounters becoming a “pattern”, these could soon be used for vindictive purposes.

    Pointing out that the ways to deal with a criminal are elaborated under different sections of IPC, CrPC, and Police Manual, the AJP leader alleged that the chief ministers statement of July 5 could lead to a mindset among the police officers in favour of encounters. “If any convict or accused is to die in police firing other than the conditions specified under the law, the police officers have to face charges of culpable homicide,” Bhuyan said.

    The AJP leader also criticised the chief ministers recent statement undermining the power and role of an MLA in a democratic set-up. “The executive, the legislature, and the judiciary are the pillars of democracy. The CMs statement that the officers will not listen to the MLAs but only work at the instruction of the ministers negates the importance of the legislature. The power to hand out death sentence given to the police by the chief minister has also clearly done away with the judiciarys role,” he claimed.

    The AJP leader added that the message that the chief minister is sending that only the executive is important is against our Constitution and the AJP strongly opposes it.

  • No more in alliance with Assam Jatiya Parishad: Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi

    By PTI
    SIVASAGAR: Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi on Sunday said his party has broken the alliance with regional front Assam Jatiya Parishad, led by former AASU general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi.

    The two newly floated regional parties, which were born out of the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act sentiment, had joined hands in February this year and contested the assembly election in March-April. The AJP had drawn a blank and the RD managed one seat with Gogoi winning as an Independent MLA.

    “We were not in alliance during the polls. We broke the tie-up in the middle of the election. There was no united opposition platform, and so we parted ways,” Gogoi told PTI in an interview.

    However, neither of the two parties announced the falling apart of their alliance during the election, although speculation was rife that their association had run into rough weather, especially on the seat selection process.

    Out of the total 126 constituencies, the AJP had contested in 83 seats and the RD in 38. In 16 constituencies, both the parties fielded candidates and fought against each other, thereby dividing the anti-CAA votes.

    Gogoi walked free on July 1 after 567 days of imprisonment following his arrest in December 2019 for his alleged role in the violent anti-CAA movement in Assam, as the National Investigation Agency failed to frame any charge against him and three associates.

    Asked why the party did not formally declare the end of the alliance before the polls, the first-time legislator said, “We contested the assembly election alone. As of now, we are not in any alliance with the AJP.”

    On February 4, AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi had met Akhil Gogoi at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, where he was undergoing treatment for various ailments while being in judicial custody, and announced finalisation of their coming together for the polls.

    On whether AJP’s decision of nominating too many candidates without consulting the RD derailed the regional alliance, Akhil Gogoi said: “I don”t know. I don’t want to comment on them. We didn’t want to have three poles in the election, but two – BJP and anti-BJP.

    But the Congress cheated us by breaking the united front. At that time, we also broke the alliance with the AJP.”

    The Congress, which was in power for 15 years in Assam since 2001, had formed a ”Grand Alliance” with AIUDF, BPF, CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML), Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM), RJD, Adivasi National Party (ANP) and Jimochayan (Deori) Peoples Party (JPP) to fight the assembly election against the BJP-led NDA.

    “After severing ties with the AJP, I myself appealed to people that they should not vote for our candidates, but vote for only the strongest BJP nominees in the respective seats. Such a thing has never happened in the world that the party president is appealing not to vote for his own party”s candidates.

    “If we had not done this and kept it a triangular contest, the BJP would have got more seats. Even after so much sacrifice, some people still blame us for dividing anti-BJP votes,” Gogoi said.

    The BJP had bagged 60 seats, while its allies AGP won nine and UPPL six. In the opposition camp, the Congress bagged 29 seats, AIUDF 16, BPF four and the CPI(M) cornered one seat.

    Peasant leader-cum-RTI activist Gogoi”s Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) and 70 other groups had last year formed the Raijor Dal.

    On the other hand, the Assam Jatiya Parishad was jointly created by the All Assam Students” Union (AASU) and the Assam Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP) in 2020.

    Gogoi, who contested as an Independent from Sibsagar, became the first Assamese to win an election remaining behind the bars and without any physical campaigning.

    He also became the first in the Assam Assembly to take oath on May 21 as a prisoner MLA, arriving from jail on special permission by the court.

  • Assam Jatiya Parishad files complaint with election office against BJP candidate Rama Kanta Dewri

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: The Assam Jatiya Parishad on Wednesday complained to the Chief Electoral Officer against sitting BJP MLA and Morigain candidate Rama Kanta Dewri for allegedly distributing money.

    The newly floated political party enclosed a video, which has gone viral showing Dewri of handing over money to some women.

    The complaint to the CEO said the BJP MLA is “clearly seen to have distributed money in cash amongst a crowd predominantly consisted of women”.

    “The act appears to be a clear case of corrupt practices and electoral offence under the legal provisions governing conduct of elections which warrant stern action by the ECI,” AJP Office Secretary Nikhil Bhattacharjya said in the letter.

    The party demanded an inquiry into the matter and “appropriate legal action” against the candidate.

    Morigaon constituency is going to polls in the second phase on Thursday.

    Dewri will have a direct contest against CPI candidate Munin Mahanta, who is representing the Congress-led Grand Alliance.

    AJP’s Banikanta Das is also in the fray from the Morigaon seat.

  • Assam Jatiya Parishad announces second list of 50 candidates for Assembly polls

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: The newly-formed Assam Jatiya Parishad on Sunday announced the second list of 50 candidates for the three-phased assembly polls, with its president Lurinjyoti Gogoi contesting from one more constituency, Naharkatia.

    The party had on Friday released the first list of 18 candidates and fielded Gogoi from Duliajan.

    Both the constituencies of the former AASU general secretary are in upper Assam and are going to polls in the first phase.

    AJP vice president Adeep Kumar Phukan said the party announced names of 68 candidates for all three phases and is in talks with its alliance partner for selecting nominees in some more seats.

    The AJP has forged the alliance with the Raijor Dal of jailed anti-citizenship law activist Akhil Gogoi for the assembly elections intending to oust the BJP-led ruling coalition from power.

    “We are united to defeat the BJP though there may be friendly contests in a few seats,” Phukan said.

    ALSO READ: AGP releases first list of 8 candidates, denies ticket to party veteran Brindaban Goswami

    AJP working president Pabindra Deka, who had quit the Asom Gana Parishad and resigned from the assembly, to join the party, will contest from Pathacharkuchi and is pitted against BJP state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass.

    The AJP fielded former Assembly Speaker Pulakesh Barua from Borkhetri and Adeep Phukan from Gauhati (East).

    Former Congress leader Dulu Ahmed will contest from Hajo as an AJP candidate.

    The AJP, which was formed by the All Assam Students’ Union and the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) following the anti-CAA protests, will also contest in five seats – Patharkandi, Dholai, Lakhipur, Katigorah and Udarbond- in the Barak Valley.

    The three-phased elections for the 126-member Assam assembly will be held on March 27, April 1 and April 6.

    Votes will be counted on May 2.

  • Election Commission of India allots ‘ship’ as party symbol to Assam Jatiya Parishad

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: The symbol of a “ship” has been allotted to the newly formed Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) for the three-phase assembly elections in Assam.

    Addressing a press conference here, AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi said the Election Commission of India (ECI) allotted the party symbol to the regional party on Saturday.

    “We will fight the polls with the symbol of a ship.

    Ship signifies our economy, culture, civilisation and trade along the Brahmaputra.

    অসম জাতীয় পৰিষদৰ সমূহ সদস্য, কৰ্মী আৰু শুভাকাংক্ষী সকলৰ বাবে এটা সুখবৰ ।ভাৰতৰ নিৰ্বাচন আয়োগে ইতিমধ্যে অসম জাতীয় পৰিষদক এটা পঞ্জীয়নভূক্ত আঞ্চলিক ৰাজনৈতিক দল হিচাপে ঘোষণা কৰিছে আৰু দলৰ প্ৰতীক চিহ্নও আৱন্টন কৰিছে ।দলৰ পঞ্জীয়ন নম্বৰটো হৈছে 56/161/2020-2021/PPS-1 pic.twitter.com/yNeEemITox
    — Assam Jatiya Parishad (@JatiyaParishad) February 28, 2021

    The ship will allow us to proceed unitedly in Assam,” he said.

    The AJP was formed by the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP) last year.

    The AJP has formed a regional alliance with Raijor Dal formed by jailed anti-CAA leader Akhil Gogoi’s Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) and 70 organisations.

    Of the total 126 seats in Assam Assembly, elections to 47, mostly in upper Assam, will be held on March 27, while 39 in Barak Valley and central Assam will go to polls on April 1 and voting in the remaining 40 seats in lower Assam will be held on April 6.

  • Shah plays infiltration card against Congress-AIUDF in poll-bound Assam

    By Express News Service
    GUWAHATI: Listing out the achievements of the BJP-led government in Assam, Home Minister Amit Shah pitched for another term to ‘safeguard’ the state’s interests. Shah on Sunday said the Congress- AIUDF combine would open ‘all gates’ to infiltrators if voted to power.

    Addressing his first political rally in the poll-bound state, Shah took a swipe at the Congress for calling the BJP communal by questioning its alliance with Badruddin Ajmal-led AIUDF, which draws support mainly from Muslims.

    At the Vijay Sankalp Samaroh, Shah asserted that an era of peace and development has been ushered in Assam by the BJP.

    Appealing to the people to vote for BJP, Shah said Assam has become ‘bullet-free and agitation free’ and the next BJP dispensation will make it ‘flood-free’, calling floods its biggest problem.

    Shah projected his party as the only alternative capable of safeguarding and promoting the regional culture.

    He also took a dig at the Assam Jatiya Parishad, a party floated by former AASU leader Lurinjyoti Gogoi, which is tipped to ally with Akhil Gogoi-led Raijor Dal, without naming them, saying they are in the poll arena to help the Congress by trying to cut into votes of the BJP.

    These two parties are stridently opposed to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and have alleged the CAA is a ‘threat’ to Assam’s culture and identity.

    The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), which has led mass agitations over the issue of regional identity in the past, has backed Assam Jatiya Parishad.

    Hitting out at the Congress, the Home Minister said the party had adopted the British Empire’s policy of ‘divide and rule’ by pitting different groups of people against one another, leading to bloodshed and loss of lives of thousands of youth.