‘I’ll be out of BJP if...’: Himanta Biswa Sarma on Congress leaders joining the saffron party

Himanta Biswa Sarma on March 4 remarked that while many Congress leaders are eager to join the BJP, he cannot induct all of them, quipping that doing so might cost him his own place in the party.

Speaking to reporters, Sarma was asked whether more leaders would follow Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah in switching sides. Responding candidly, the Chief Minister said, “Many leaders want to join the BJP, but if I bring everyone from Congress, then I will only be out of the BJP.”

He, however, confirmed that three sitting MLAs are set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party officially on Wednesday morning. The legislators — Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha, Basanta Das and Shaktikanta Das — will formally join the BJP at 8 AM.

The development signals another setback for the Congress ahead of the upcoming political season in Assam, even as the BJP continues to consolidate its position by attracting opposition leaders into its fold.