Assam: Former Youth Congress president Angkita Dutta to join BJP

Former Assam Youth Congress president Angkita Dutta is all set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Reliable sources have told India Today NE that Dutta will join the saffron party on January 28. 

Along with Angkita, three other prominent leaders are also set to join the BJP on January 28. They include former Congress MLA from Khumtai constituency Bismita Gogoi, former president of All Assam Student Union (AASU) Dipanka Nath and former AASU vice-president Prakash Das. 

Meanwhile, sources have also confirmed that former Congress leader Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee is slated to join the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) on January 29. 

Angkita Dutta jumping ship to the BJP is something that has been anticipated by some as she was given the snub by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi during his recent Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra stint in Assam. 

Noteworthy is that on January 18, Angkita was given the snub by Rahul Gandhi after she sought to meet him and seek justice from Rahul Gandhi during his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Assam. Her efforts to submit a memorandum and seek reinstatement in the party were in vain as Gandhi's convoy passed without granting her an audience. This incident sparked a debate on the effectiveness of the Congress party's internal mechanisms to address such serious allegations and the broader implications for justice within political organizations.

Dutta had been expelled from the primary membership of the Congress party for six years on April 22, 2023, following her allegations of sexual harassment against Indian Youth Congress president Srinivas B. V.

Despite her suspension, Dutta remained hopeful that Gandhi's yatra, which aimed to address injustices and create a more equitable society, would provide her with the 'nyay' (justice) she sought.