Assam polls: Proposal for 51 seats sent to TMC leadership, says Sushmita Dev

Sushmita Dev, Member of Parliament of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), said the party will contest the 2026 Assam Assembly elections and is preparing its strategy to challenge the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Reacting to the announcement of the election dates, Dev said district presidents of the party have already sent a proposal suggesting 51 seats to the party leadership, including chairperson Mamata Banerjee and the national general secretary. 

However, she clarified that the final decision on the number of seats to be contested will be taken by the party leadership.

Dev said the party’s primary objective in the elections would be to strategically contest in order to defeat the BJP and “save Assam.”

She also criticised Narendra Modi and Amit Shah for their recent visits to the state. According to Dev, both the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister visited Assam twice and used government programmes funded by taxpayers to promote the BJP and criticise the opposition.

Dev alleged that official government events, including the launch of development schemes such as projects in Kokrajhar and an expressway in the Barak Valley region, were turned into political platforms to seek votes for the BJP.

She claimed that using government programmes and public funds for political campaigning was unprecedented in the country’s history.