Former Union Minister Rajen Gohain, 17 others resign from BJP in Assam

In a major political development ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, former Union Minister and four-time BJP MP from Nagaon, Rajen Gohain, resigned from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with 17 other members on Thursday.

In a letter addressed to Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia, Gohain announced his resignation from the party’s primary membership and relinquished all organisational responsibilities with immediate effect.

Party sources said that 17 other BJP members, mostly from Upper and Central Assam, also tendered their resignations to Saikia, signaling growing internal discontent within the party’s state unit.

Speaking to PTI, Gohain said his decision stemmed from the BJP’s “failure to fulfil the promises made to the people of Assam” and its “betrayal of indigenous communities by allowing outsiders to settle in the state.”

A prominent face of the BJP in Assam, Gohain represented the Nagaon parliamentary constituency for four consecutive terms from 1999 to 2019 and served as the Union Minister of State for Railways from 2016 to 2019.