News Analysis India

Tag: Assam polls

  • Assam polls: Final phase records 82.28% voters’ turnout

    Express News Service
    GUWAHATI: The third and final phase Assam polls on Tuesday recorded a voters’ turnout of 82.28%.

    The first two phases of polling in 47 and 39 constituencies had recorded voters’ turnout of 79.97% and 80.96% respectively.

    Forty of the state’s 126 constituencies, spread across 12 districts of Lower Assam, went to polls on Tuesday. In the 2016 elections, BJP and Congress had won 11 of these seats each, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) six, Bodoland People’s Front eight, and Asom Gana Parishad four.

    Polling was by and large peaceful although there were some stray incidents of violence. The police had to use force when two groups of people clashed over some issues at a polling station in the Golakganj constituency in Dhubri district.

    At Guptipara in Bilasipara West constituency, also in Dhubri district, a group of people attacked security personnel over the distribution of free masks. The police restored order by resorting to lathicharge.

    ALSO READ | HIGHLIGHTS | Final phase of polling concludes in Assam, five more rounds of ‘khela’ left in Bengal

    The police used batons also outside a polling booth in Bongaigaon to restore order after a large crowd arrived leading to a commotion.

    Siramjit Rabha, a 92-year-old voter, who said he has been voting since independence, was felicitated by election officials after he had cast his vote at the Kothakuthi Lower Primary School under the Dudhnai constituency in Goalpara district.

    Of Assam’s 2,33,74,087 voters, 2,89,474 were aged 80 years or above and 1,38,290 were voters with disabilities.

    Meanwhile, Assam Assembly Deputy Speaker Aminul Haque Laskar was interrogated twice in the past 48 hours in connection with an incident of firing by his bodyguards on April 1. Five of them were suspended.

    Three people were injured when the personnel opened fire after clashes had broken out between BJP and AIUDF supporters at a polling station in the Sonai constituency.

  • Assembly elections phase three: Congress, allies hold edge in minority-heavy lower Assam

    Express News Service
    GUWAHATI: The Congress-led grand alliance appears to have an edge over the BJP-led ruling alliance in the 40 constituencies where the third and final phase of Assam elections will be held on Tuesday.These seats are spread across lower Assam.

    In the 2016 elections in these seats, BJP and Congress had won 11 each. Bengali-speaking Muslims, considered to be the vote bank of Congress and the minority-based AIUDF, are large majorities in several of these seats.

    Congress heads the 10-party grand alliance, which also has AIUDF and BPF as components.

    In 2016, they did not have an alliance among them. BPF was a BJP ally then.In 14 of the state’s 126 seats, the combined vote share of Congress-AIUDF was more than that of the winning candidates from BJP or its ally AGP. Four of these constituencies are going to polls on Tuesday.

    There is a perception that the Congress-AIUDF deal will prevent the split of anti-BJP votes.

    Another factor that could harm BJP is its decision to sever ties with BPF. The saffron party has found a new ally in United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). In 2016, BPF had won all 12 seats in BTR.

    Eight of these are going to polls in the third phase. BPF, which ruled the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council for 17 successive years till last December, is expected to give UPPL a run for its money.

    Key constituencies in this phase are Jalukbari, Patacharkuchi, Dharmapur and Bongaigaon. Jalukbari is held by the BJP’s strongman and minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. BJP state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass is contesting from Patacharkuchi.

    He had won the last election from Sorbhog.The first two phases of polling in 47 and 39 constituencies had recorded voter turnouts of 79.97 per cent and 80.96 per cent, respectively. 

    Three arrested for attacking EVM truck 

    Silchar (Assam): Three persons were arrested for allegedly attacking a truck carrying reserve EVMs in Cachar district during the second phase of polling, a police officer said on Monday.

    The police have identified more than 20 people for their alleged involvement in the incident which occurred at Jhapirbond near the National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project.

  • 5 poll officials suspended after 181 votes cast in Assam booth that has 90 voters 

    Express News Service
    GUWAHATI: Five polling personnel were suspended in Assam after it emerged that 181 votes were cast in a booth that had 90 eligible voters.The incident was reported from the 107(A) Khothlir Lower Primary School polling booth in the Haflong Assembly segment. The Dima Hasao District Election Officer ordered a re-poll in the booth.It was an auxiliary polling station of the main voting centre at Mouldam Lower Primary School. The incident came to the fore on April 4, two days after polling was held in the booth.Some villagers had reportedly come with their own list of voters and refused to accept the official voters’ list. The constituency had recorded 74% voting as against the statewide average of 80.96%.Assam’s Chief Electoral Officer, Nitin Khade said during scrutiny, it was found that the presiding officer and the polling officers had allowed 181 persons to cast their votes.“The presiding and the first polling officers in their statements have admitted that they allowed the voters registered against the main polling station to cast their votes in the auxiliary polling station,” Khade said.He said taking note of the lapse, the District Election Officer suspended the sector officer, the presiding officer, and three other polling officers.“The auxiliary polling station…has been created for the first time to facilitate the voters in the remote area as the polling percentage in the last Parliamentary election was only 34,” Khade added.

  • Campaigning for last phase of Assam polls ends

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: Campaigning for the third and last phase of the Assam assembly elections ended on Sunday.

    The fate of 337 candidates, including NEDA convenor and state minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, will be sealed in EVMs in 40 constituencies on April 6.

    An array of national leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress’s Rahul Gandhi campaigned for their respective alliance candidates.

    The seats, spread across 12 districts including three in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), witnessed last- minute canvassing by candidates, including 25 women, before the end of campaigning.

    Modi, who had campaigned in all three phases, addressed two rallies at Kokrajhar and Tamulpur, both in BTR, and highlighted the signing of the Bodo Accord and development initiatives of the BJP.

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah, another star campaigner for the BJP, addressed a series of election rallies in Lower Assam constituencies.

    He was scheduled to address three rallies on the last day of campaigning but had to cut short his visit to Assam and returned to New Delhi following the Maoist attack in Chhattisgarh.

    BJP chief J P Nadda, Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Narendra Tomar, Jitendra Singh, Smriti Irani, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Anurag Thakur, and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also campaigned for the party.

    Rahul Gandhi visited the Kamkhaya Temple and addressed rallies at Chaygaon and Barkhetri seats, while his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was also scheduled to campaign in three constituencies in Lower Assam but had to cancel the plan after coming in contact with a COVID-19 infected person.

    Rajya Sabha MPs Mallikarjun Kharge, Dr Nasir Hussain and Dr Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel, former chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, Kamal Nath and Ashok Chavan respectively, and AICC leader Randeep Singh Surjewala campaigned for the ‘Grand Alliance’ candidates.

    ‘Mahajoth’ or ‘Grand Alliance’ comprises Congress, AIUDF, Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF), CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML) Liberation, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM).

    AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, the BJP’s prime target in this election, carried out hectic campaigning for his party candidates along with those of his alliance partners.

    The Assam BJP’s campaign trail was led by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, state unit chief Ranjeet Kumar Dass, NEDA convenor Himanta Biswa Sarma, who has so far addressed the highest number of election rallies, and other ministers of the outgoing assembly.

    Sarma was barred by the Election Commission from campaigning for 48 hours from April 2 for allegedly making threatening remarks against BPF chief Hagrama Mohilary but he appealed for a review and subsequently, it was reduced to 24 hours.

    State Congress unit chief Ripun Bora, Lok Sabha MPs Pradyut Bordoloi, Gaurav Gogoi and Abdul Khaleque led the party’s campaign along with AICC Assam in-charge Jitendra Singh.

    The BJP attacked Ajmal by accusing him of encouraging illegal immigration from Bangladesh, leading to “land and love Jihad”.

    The saffron party promised to tackle these issues by bringing in a legislation.

    The saffron party, besides speaking about development initiatives taken by the “double-engine government”, also attacked the Congress for aligning with the AIUDF.

    The Congress, on the other hand, focussed its campaign on the ‘five guarantees’ of not implementing CAA, providing government jobs to five lakh youths, 200 units of free power, raising daily wages of tea garden workers to Rs 365 and giving a monthly allowance of Rs 2,000 to homemakers.

    To reach out to the electors, several contestants played Holi and danced to the tunes of Bihu songs, as the state’s most important festival ‘Rongali Bihu’ is just a fortnight away.

    Apart from Sarma, other important candidates in the fray are Chandra Mohan Patowary (Dharampur), Siddhartha Bhattacharya (Gauhati East), Asom Gana Parishad’s Phanibhushan Choudhury (Bongaigaon), BJP state chief Ranjeet Kumar Dass (Patacharkuchi), Pramila Rani Brahma (Kokrajhar-East) and Kokrajhar MP Naba Sarania (Barama).

    The fate of 20 sitting MLAs, including eight from the Congress, five from the BJP, three each from the AIUDF and BPF and one from AGP, will be decided in the final phase.

    Singer Kalpana Patowary is contesting on an AGP ticket from Sarukhetri, while journalists Manjit Mahanta and Hridyananda Gogoi are locked in a battle in Dispur on Congress and NCP tickets respectively.

    The ruling BJP is contesting 20 constituencies while its allies AGP in 12 and UPPL in eight.

    The Congress is contesting 23 seats while its partners AIUDF in 12, BPF in eight and CPI(M) in one.

    A friendly contest will be witnessed between the AIUDF and Congress in four seats.

    Newly floated Assam Jatiya Parishad is contesting 21 seats.

    A total of 79,19,641 electors, including 40,11,539 males, 39,07,963 females and 139 persons of the third gender are eligible to exercise their franchise.

  • Congress ‘propaganda’ on CAA fails to cut ice with people in poll-bound Assam: Anurag Thakur

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: Congress and other opposition parties in Assam are using Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) as a “propaganda” to mislead the people in the polls but they have failed to peddle lies, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said on Sunday.

    The “propaganda that CAA is against the rights of the Assamese has fallen flat” as the people have totally ignored it in the ongoing assembly elections, Thakur told PTI in an interview.

    “The Congress and other opposition parties made a big hue and cry over CAA and tried to create a narrative in the polls that the Act is against the rights of the people ‘parantu jhooth ke pao nahi hote (a lie has no legs to stand upon),” he said.

    The Citizenship (Amendment) Act aims to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who entered India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, having fled religious persecution in their countries The people of Assam know that the NDA government will not take any step which is against their interest, the Union Minister for state for Finance and Corporate Affairs added.

    The opposition Congress, as part of its ‘Five Guarantee’ campaign during the elections, has promised that the CAA will not be implemented in the state and steps will be taken not to ratify it in the assembly, if the party is voted to power.

    Attacking the Congress-AIUDF alliance in the state, the Union minister said that it exposes the “policy of appeasement for the sake of vote-bank politics pursued by the Congress always”.

    The Congress has stooped so low in its quest for power that its leader Rahul Gandhi describes a person like AIUDF Chief Badruddin Ajmal as the identity of Assam.

    “Can people of the state ever accept this?” Thakur asked.

    “Congress ghuspetiyo ke peeth par baith kar satta pe aana chahte hain aur NDA ghuspetiyo ko rokne (Congress wants to ride to power on the back of infiltrators but the NDA wants to stop infiltrators),” he said.

    Congress represents ‘corruption and communalism’ whereas NDA symbolizes ‘good governance and development’, he asserted.

    During the last five years, the double-engine government of NDA at the centre and the Sarbananda Sonowal led government in the state have ensured the delivery of schemes and its benefits to the targeted beneficiaries, he said.

    The last five years has taken Assam to new heights with a transparent government which has maintained accountability and good governance, he said.

    Comparing the previous Congress governments with that of the BJP, the Union minister said that former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who represented the state for 10 years, did not visit the state even ten times during his tenure, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited the state 35 times in the last six years.

    Besides, the former had allocated only Rs 80,000 crore in ten years while Rs 1,60,000 crore has been allocated in five years by the Modi governmnent, he said.

    This makes it amply clear that NDA is very serious about ensuring the development of Assam and it has taken several initiatives to ensure this during its tenure.

    People know this and they will bring NDA back to power for the second consecutive term so that the process of development continues, he said.

    This continuity is very important so that development goes on and Assam is transformed as one of the top five states in the country, he added.

    “The continuity of the NDA government is also important to check the influx of illegal migrants in the state and in the next five years, we will ensure that the pending work of sealing borders in completed,” he said.

    The former president of the Board of Cricket Control of India (BCCI) said that during his tenure in the cricket body, Assam Cricket Associations stadium in Guwahati was completed and he had ensured that IPL and international matches are allotted to the state.

    “Assam has huge potential among youths to take up sports and we are keen to develop the state as a sports hub”, he said.

    Youths know that it is the NDA government that recognize their potential and has created immense opportunities for them which they must avail and make the state one of the foremost in the country.

    Assam has the best connectivity and infrastructure in the region and is the ‘Gateway to the North East’ with the NDA committed to take its potential to greater heights.

    He asserted that the NDA’s initiatives to make Assam free from floods, corruption, blockade, violence and infiltration have convinced people that there is no alternative to this government in the state.

  • BJP slams Baghel for continuing campaign in Assam despite Naxal attack in Chhattisgarh

    By ANI
    GUWAHATI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Mangaldoi Dilip Saikia slammed Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel for continuing to campaign in Assam at a time when his state saw a deadly encounter between security personnel and Naxalites and alleged that the Congress leader doesn’t care.

    “At a time when many security personnel have lost their lives, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel is busy in the poll campaign in Assam. He is camping here with government staff and misusing government machinery. Election Commission should investigate this matter,” Saikia told ANI.

    “Baghel doesn’t care about the killing of the jawans. Instead of fulfilling his duties towards Chhattisgarh, the Congress leader is camping in Assam,” Saikia alleged.

    “I pay my tribute to the jawans who laid their life on the line of duty. We stand with their families,” the BJP national General Secretary said.

    Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday expressed deep grief over the killing of five jawans in the encounter between the security forces and Naxalites near Tarrem in Bijapur district in Chhattisgarh.

    Shah also asked the Director-General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) to go to Chhattisgarh and take stock of the situation.

    Acting upon the order, Kuldiep Singh reached Chhattisgarh in the morning and looked after the operational work.

    Five security personnel were killed and around 31 sustained injuries in the encounter in Bijapur on Saturday, Chhattisgarh Police said.

    Around 21 security personnel are still missing following the encounter with Naxals, out of which seven are from CRPF.

  • Assam minister, who threatened two journalists, asked to appear before police

    By PTI
    MORIGAON: Assam minister Pijush Hazarika, who allegedly threatened two journalists of dire consequences, has been issued a notice to appear before police and his call recordings have been sent to forensic lab for examination, officials said on Saturday.

    Two FIRs filed at Jagiroad police station by the scribes have been merged, and Hazarika has been booked under Sections 500 (defamation), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the IPC.

    The minister, who is contesting from the Jagiroad constituency where polling took place in the second phase on Thursday, had allegedly threatened the two journalists for reporting about a controversial campaign speech by his wife.

    “The statements of the journalists were recorded and a notice was issued to the minister in connection with the case. He has been asked to come to Jagiroad PS for recording his statement,” Morigaon District Superintendent of Police Nanda Singh Borkala told PTI.

    Hazarika, the Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, said he will come to the police station on Sunday to give his statement, the SP said.

    Borkala said the mobile phones of the scribes and that of Hazarika have been seized and the voice recordings of the conversation sent to a forensic laboratory in Guwahati.

    “As per law and procedure, we will proceed in the case,” he added.

    In the FIR, the two journalists – Nazrul Islam and Tulsi Manta – of Assamese news channels claimed that Hazarika had threatened them with dire consequences at 1 pm on Thursday, when they were busy in poll coverage of the second phase in Morigaon district.

    Police have also provided personal security cover to both the journalists.

    Meanwhile, the IG (Law and Order) Deepak Kumar Kedia, who is the nodal officer of the state police for the ongoing Assam assembly elections, has sought a report from the district police on the case.

    Assam Congress chief Ripun Bora has also filed a complaint with the state’s chief electoral officer, demanding Hazarika’s disqualification from the polls.

    Other opposition parties like the AIUDF, Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Dal, AASU, AJYCP and several social groups also called for immediate disqualification of Hazarika from the elections.

    The Gauhati Press Club (GPC) condemned the “act of intimidation” by Hazarika.

    In an audio clip telecast by an Assamese news channel on Thursday, the minister can be heard threatening the scribes of dragging them out of their homes and making them “vanish”.

    The minister also said in the telephonic conversation, which has now gone viral, that he was “sad” because the news was related to his wife Aimee Baruah, who while campaigning for her husband a few days ago had made a controversial comment on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

    Baruah, at a recent public meeting in Jagiroad, had reportedly said the people from the Bengali community will be thrown out of the country if the CAA is not implemented.

  • Assam polls: Modi attacks junior Azmal for objectionable comments, says Mahajot has accepted defeat

    Express News Service
    GUWAHATI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday slammed the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) over an objectionable comment made by its MLA Abdur Rahim had made.

    Addressing a rally at Tamulpur, Modi said, “The election is underway. I heard some people made some announcements yesterday (Friday). They have accepted that they lost the polls. They have also given a description of the next government — how it will look like and what attire it will wear”.

    “It is shocking that they have come up with a blueprint to grab Assam five years from now. There cannot be a bigger insult to Assam and its culture than this,” he said without taking any name..However, his statement, ostensibly, had reference to the objectionable remarks of Rahim, who is the son of AIUDF chief and MP, Maulana Badruddin Ajmal.

    ALSO READ | Government working sincerely to implement Assam Accord, most problems resolved: PM Narendra Modi

    Modi claimed the people of Assam had realised the “Mahajhoot” (grand lies) of the “Mahajot” (grand alliance). He said the people would not tolerate those who insult Assam’s pride and identity and give them a befitting reply in the polls.

    Supporters during PM Narendra Modi’s rally inAssam’s Baksa district on Saturday | ptiThe Congress has formed a ten-party grand alliance of the Opposition to oust the ruling BJP from power. All throughout its poll campaign, the BJP is targeting the grand old party and the AIUDF. The BJP is telling voters that if the alliance grabs power, Ajmal will become the chief minister of Assam. He is seen by many as a sympathizer of illegal immigrants.

    Meanwhile, midway through his speech, Modi had halted briefly to direct the doctors accompanying him to attend to a person in the crowd who fainted.

    “Pausing in the middle of his speech at Tamulpur in Assam, PM @narendramodi promptly directed the team of PMO doctors to give immediate assistance to an old-aged person, Shri Hari Charan Das, in the rally who was apparently dehydrated. He has been attended to and is stable now,” the BJP tweeted.

    The third and final phase Assam polls will be held on April 6.

  • AIUDF to support Congress CM in Assam: Badruddin Ajmal

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal on Saturday said the party will support a leader from the Congress as the next chief minister of Assam if the ‘Grand Alliance’ is voted to power.

    The ruling BJP has been aggressively campaigning that the ongoing Assembly polls in Assam is a “clash of civilisation” and to prevent Ajmal from becoming the chief minister of the state.

    “AIUDF is committed to supporting a Congress CM in the state after 2 May (sic).

    Congress Mahajot govt, an alliance of Ten parties, will work equally for all regions & communities of Assam without fear or favour,” Ajmal tweeted.

    The only agenda of the ‘Mahajot’ or ‘Grand Alliance’ government is to implement the “Five Guarantees” of the Congress which was annnounced during campaigning.

    The Congress has formed the ‘Grand Alliance’ with AIUDF, BPF, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), Anchalik Gana Morcha (AGM), RJD, Adivasi National Party (ANP) and Jimochayan (Deori) Peoples Party (JPP) to fight the assembly election in Assam against the BJP-led NDA.

    The ‘Grand Alliance’ has “guaranteed” that if it is voted to power, then a law will be introduced to nullify the CAA, provide five lakh government jobs, 200 units of free electricity to all households, Rs 2000 per month for housewives and raise minimum wages of tea garden workers to Rs 365.

  • Magisterial probe ordered into Assam EVM row

    By PTI
    KARIMGANJ/HAILAKANDI: A magisterial probe has been ordered to determine why a polling team in Assam carried an EVM in a vehicle owned by the wife of a BJP candidate, officials said on Saturday.

    Karimganj District Deputy Superintendent Anbamuthan MP issued an order on Friday night to probe the incident, which has snowballed into a huge controversy amid the ongoing Assam assembly elections, the last phase of which is slated for Tuesday.

    Additional District Magistrate Rajeshan Terang has been asked to conduct the enquiry and submit a detailed report within three days.

    “…This incident posed a threat to security of the polled EVMs and has an adverse effect on the law and order situation,” the order said.

    The probe will also find out the circumstances leading to the poll party travelling in a private vehicle, and ascertain whether there was any lapse or conspiracy on the part of the authorities.

    Violence had broken out on the outskirts of Karimganj town on Thursday night after a crowd spotted a BJP candidate’s vehicle being used to transport a polled EVM to the strong room, prompting the police to fire in the air to bring the situation under control.

    The poll team from Ratabari constituency claimed that its official vehicle broke down midway, forcing them to ask for a lift from a passing vehicle, which turned out to be that of the wife of BJP’s Patharkandi candidate.

    Sitting MLA Krishnendu Paul is the BJP candidate from the Patharkandi seat, while Ratabari is currently represented by his party MLA Bijoy Malakar, who is contesting the election as well.

    Ratabari and Patharkandi constituencies went to the polls in the second phase on Thursday.

    The Election Commission has suspended four election officials and ordered repolling at the booth.

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah has also sought an inquiry by the commission.

    Meanwhile, police arrested at least six persons for allegedly live streaming the violence that had erupted after the incident, and inciting the mob to attack the private vehicle in which the poll party was travelling with three units of the EVM from 149 Indira MV School in Ratabari.

    “We are identifying the people who were seen attacking the vehicle in the videos…more arrests are likely,” a senior police official said.

    Opposition Congress and the AIUDF have slammed the authorities for the incident, and alleged that the EVM was being “stolen”.

    Demanding an explanation and immediate action, Assam Congress chief Ripun Bora said the party will consider boycotting the election if “this open loot and rigging of EVMs” does not stop immediately.