Assam polls: Seat row over Dhing, Ranganadi and Dalgaon derails Congress–Raijor Dal talks

Alliance talks between Indian National Congress and Raijor Dal for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections have ended without an agreement, the regional party said on March 13.

In a statement, Raijor Dal alleged that despite several rounds of discussions over the past few months, the Congress did not take a final decision in favour of forming an alliance for the 2026 polls.

The party said the issue was discussed at a high-level meeting of the Congress leadership in New Delhi on Friday but no agreement could be reached on seat-sharing.

According to Raijor Dal, the Congress rejected the alliance proposal submitted by the party and also declined to allocate certain constituencies that Raijor Dal had sought as part of the seat-sharing arrangement.

The regional party claimed that earlier discussions had already stalled after the Congress refused to directly allot the Dhing Assembly constituency. During the latest round of talks, the Congress also declined to leave the Ranganadi and Dalgaon constituencies for Raijor Dal, it said.

The meeting was attended by Congress general secretary Jitendra Singh, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Gaurav Gogoi and Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Assembly Debabrata Saikia, among others, the statement added.

Raijor Dal said it had sought 15 Assembly constituencies as part of the proposed alliance. However, it alleged that the Congress agreed to directly allocate only a few seats and proposed other constituencies of its own choice, while suggesting friendly contests in some segments.

The party further claimed that in the latest discussion the Congress was willing to directly allot only three constituencies, which Raijor Dal termed unacceptable.

Following the development, the steering committee of Raijor Dal held a meeting on Friday and decided to formally end the alliance talks with the Congress.

The party also alleged that repeated delays in the negotiations and changes in the Congress’ position had caused organisational setbacks for Raijor Dal ahead of the elections.