Know Your Constituency: Dibrugarh

Guwahati, April 1, 2019:

The Dibrugarh Constituency in Assam, which is rich in resources like coal, oil and tea is one of the most politically significant Constituencies of Assam. Dibrugarh is also known as the ‘tea city of India’. As per the Election Commission’s diktat, the polling in this integral Upper Assam Lok Sabha Constituency shall take place during the First Phase of the Lok Sabha elections on April 11.

In 2014, the election was won by Rameshwar Teli, who bagged 4,94,364 votes, whereas Congress party runner-up Paban Singh Ghatowar managed ‘only’ 3,09,017 votes.

History:

The Dibrugarh Constituency has traditionally been a stronghold of the Congress as the party’s candidate J.N. Hazarika won the first four General Elections representing the state. Paban Singh Ghatowar, a former Union Minister, has been appointed MP five non-consecutive times and is contesting the polls again this time from the INC. Ghatowar has meanwhile, made the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill one of his key election issues. “If we win we will strongly oppose the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 in the parliament. I respect candidates who have filed their nominations from Dibrugarh seat and wished them good luck for the election,” Ghatowar said while filing his nomination.

Ghatowar will face a stiff challenge from the incumbent Rameshwar Teli, who has is strongly backed by the tea tribe community and due to the numerous schemes benefitting the community, continues to enjoy strong support and goodwill.

Numbers Game:

Total number of voters who will cast their votes in the Constituency:

Male Voters: 662,634

Female Voters: 649,533

Third gender: 28

Total Voters: 1,312,195

List of Assembly Constituencies under Dibrugarh: Moran, Dibrugarh, Lahowal, Duliajan, Tingkhong, Naharkatia, Tinsukia, Digboi and Margherita.

Bookies’ Favorite: Rameshwar Teli