Sonowal takes charge as Assam BJP chief

Bharatiya Janata Party’s Assam unit chief Sarbananda Sonowal. They said that after Bihar’s drubbing, BJP has put all its energy in Assam to ensure that the saffron party wrest power from Congress in 2016.

The BJP, however, made no official comment on it. Former Congress heavyweight Himanta Biswa Sarma, who joined the BJP in August, was made convener of the election.

Sonowal has replaced Siddhartha Bhattacharyya as state BJP chief while the latter has been appointed national spokesman in charge of the Northeastern region. For the first time in Assam politics, BJP had won as many as seven seats in the general elections held previous year. “Other issues will be decided by BJP Parliamentary Board”, he said. Asked what would be the BJP strategy in the state under his leadership, Sonowal said it would be chalked out after getting a feedback from a large cross-section of people.

“The way Congress has ruled in the state no section of society is happy”, he said. The All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) has ruled out any pre-election alliance with Congress, even as party chief Badruddin Ajmal and Assam CM Tarun Gogoi attended Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s dinner party on Friday.

After winning Assembly elections in four states in 2014, the BJP has suffered massive defeats in Delhi and Bihar that has invigorated the opposition.

Sonowal has been made chairman of the election management committee. Sonowal now holds independent charge of Sports and Youths Affairs Ministry.

Assam is the only one of the five states, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Tripura being the other four-going to the polls in 2016 where BJP is said to be in a good position to give a tough fight to ruling Congress.

“Under the leadership of our prime minister, people of Assam have developed a firm belief that only the BJP can bring about a change”.

“Governments formed by the Congress or the AGP have not been successful in making any visible changes in the lives of Assam people”, he said.