Assam Congress chief says party to contest in 14 seats for Lok Sabha polls

Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhupen Borah has said that the party would be contesting in all 14 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. 

Speaking to reporters, Borah said that Congress would be contesting in all the 14 seats for the Lok Sabha elections. 

The statement of the APCC president is significant as Congress is already in an alliance with other opposition parties in Assam. Now it raises questions if Congress has decided not to share any seat with its allies. It is also not clear if Congress plans to do any seat sharing in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections or in the next assembly elections in Assam, with its allies. 

Interestingly, Borah while speaking to India Today NE on the matter, said that he made the statement as the leader of the opposition alliance and not just as the Assam Congress party chief. 

"I have not said it as the Congress president but as the president of the alliance of opposition parties. I have always said as the opposition alliance leader that we will contest in the parliamentary elections. I am the president of the opposition alliance of 12 parties and I have always said that we will contest in all the 14 seats," said Borah, while speaking to India Today NE. 

Meanwhile, reacting to Borah's statement in the media, Raijor Dal leader and Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi has asked Bhupen Borah to clarify his statement and come clean on the matter. 

Noteworthy here is that Congress in Assam is in an alliance with opposition parties such as CPI(M), CPI(ML) Liberation, Assam Jatiya Parishad, Raijor Dal, Jatiya Dal Asom, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Nationalist Congress Party and Liberal Democratic Party, among others. Earlier in March this year, Congress held a meeting with this parties in a bid to form an alliance. 

Interestingly, the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party were not invited for the meet. 

Meanwhile, Borah has also said that tickets would be given to candidates who have been consistently loyal towards the party. The APCC president said that the loyalty of the aspirants would be tested before tickets are distributed for the Lok Sabha elections or even the next assembly elections. 

Borah's loyalty statement comes at a time when the Assam Congress unit recently witnessed controversy within the party over three MLAs allegedly getting close to the ruling BJP. While two MLAs, Abdul Batin Khandakar and Bhaskarjyoti Baruah for attending the government's Amrit Kalash Yatra programme. Chaygaon MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed was also issued a showcause notice for allegedly being close to the BJP, especially Himanta Biswa Sarma.  

Recently, the issue had garnered attention during the Congress party's political affairs committee meeting which was chaired by Congress party's Assam incharge Jitendra Singh.