'New Congress will give birth to new Assam’: Gaurav Gogoi campaigns in Lakhimpur

President of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) Gaurav Gogoi, on March 16 held an election campaign in Lakhimpur and asserted that a “new Congress” is emerging in the state ahead of the Assembly polls.

Addressing reporters, Gogoi said the party has fielded several new faces in its candidate list and is undergoing a transformation aimed at offering an alternative vision for Assam.

“We are witnessing a new Congress in a new Assam. There are new faces on the Congress’s list. This new Congress will give birth to a new Assam in the coming days,” he said.

The Election Commission of India has announced that polling for all 126 constituencies of the Assam Legislative Assembly will be held in a single phase on April 9, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4.

Assam is set to witness a direct contest between the incumbent BJP-led NDA government and the Congress. The BJP government, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, is seeking a third consecutive term in office, while the Congress aims to unseat the ruling alliance.

In the 2021 Assembly elections, the NDA — comprising the Bharatiya Janata Party, AGP and UPPL, secured 75 seats, with the BJP emerging as the largest partner with 60 seats. The voter turnout stood at 86.2 per cent, with over 2.2 crore registered voters.

In the 2016 Assembly elections, the BJP won 60 seats, while the Congress secured 26 seats. The AIUDF won 13 seats. The voter turnout was recorded at 83.9 per cent, with nearly 1.99 crore voters casting their ballots.