(As Assam gears up for meeting polls, each Wednesday, particular correspondent Sukrita Barua deciphers the electoral tendencies, political alerts and marketing campaign strikes shaping the race.)
Prior to now few days, two main press conferences had been held as political theater in poll-bound Assam.
The primary assembly was held within the convention room of the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, the place CM Himanta Biswa Sarma shared the stage with 5 senior ministers. The CM shared the findings of the particular investigation staff tasked with probing allegations in opposition to Assam Congress chief and MP Gaurav Gogoi that he’s a “Pakistani spy”. This was the end result of a year-long operation by which Sarma took no prisoners. Not solely Gogoi, but in addition his spouse Elizabeth Colburn and their two kids got here beneath intense public scrutiny, with their faith and nationality questioned and the couple’s private paperwork, together with employment data, passports and Aadhaar playing cards, made public.
The second assembly was held the following day at Guwahati’s Rajiv Bhawan, the place Gogoi, accompanied by fellow Congress MPs Pradyut Bordoloi and Rakibul Hussain, dismissed the litany of accusations and claimed the next ethical floor, saying, “We find out about your kids too, however we do not need to discuss it,” and drawing on the legacy of his father, former CM Tarun Gogoi.
In a brand new marketing campaign of its personal, the Congress particularly focused Sarma and his entrepreneur spouse Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, accusing him of coming into politics to counterpoint his household and “grabbing land” throughout the state “within the title of his household.”
The showdown has been on paper ever because it turned clear that Gogoi would play a much bigger function in nationwide politics after the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Their relationship has been marked by unhealthy bloodlines and tainted by thwarted ambitions. Himanta was a key confidant of Tarun Gogoi however fell out with him after the previous CM began selling his son and ultimately joined the BJP. After years of wars of phrases and name-calling, that is essentially the most sustained and violent assault but.
Why Congress Advantages
This personalised political agenda has given the Congress one thing that Assam has not had since Tarun Gogoi’s dying in 2020: a transparent and distinct ‘face’. Just like the Bharatiya Janata Get together, it didn’t have a CM candidate and contested the 2021 elections with a set of leaders on the entrance. Moreover Gaurav Gogoi, there have been Nagaon MP Pradyut Bordoloi after which Congress president Ripun Bora. Debabrata Saikia, MLA and son of one other former CM, Hiteswar Saikia.
“The Congress might endure from among the Prime Minister’s claims and innuendos, nevertheless it has definitely benefited from framing this election marketing campaign as one between the Prime Minister and Gaurav Gogoi. It’s constructing Gogoi’s public persona. There could also be many different points with the Congress, together with inner preparations, however there isn’t any dispute that he’s the face of the social gathering and the marketing campaign,” a senior official stated.
Gogoi has been an MP since 2014, however this election would be the first main check of his management in state politics. In June 2024, he was appointed to go the state’s legislative division, which was combating consecutive losses. Its greatest second of victory was Gogoi’s victory in 2024 from the Jorhat Lok Sabha constituency after an all-out battle led by Sarma for the Bharatiya Janata Get together cost. For political observers, this marked Gogoi’s entry into Assamese politics, testing new electoral territory after his earlier constituency and the current delimitation drive that noticed the household settlement of Kaliabor redrawn and renamed. Mr. Gogoi served because the Kaliabor consultant for 2 phrases.
However, Congress has been affected by issues for years. The group is in regular decline, with staff and leaders leaving for the Bharatiya Janata Get together. It’s tough to efficiently collaborate with different political events and assemble a singular narrative that successfully counters the massive energy of the Bharatiya Janata Get together. Mr. Gogoi himself was raised in Delhi and is seen as a extra urbane determine, and is seen as a modest determine who has lengthy distanced himself from the state’s grassroots politics.
“Having him because the state president as somebody who can tackle Himanta Biswa Sarma has drastically boosted morale. However time could also be in opposition to him as he had little time to strengthen the social gathering with restricted sources,” stated a younger Congress chief.
