Guwahati: Of all the five state Assembly elections, Assam’s results have given BJP the loudest cheer.
With a resounding victory in Assam, the party enters the northeastern part of the country which was till this date a Congress bastion.
There are many factors which led to Congress’ demise; one being Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi’s arrogance. His attempt to portray himself as a ‘blunt chief minister’ alienated the party in the state.
The Congress’ decision to drive out leader Himanta Biswa Sarma to create space for Tarun Gogoi’s son Gaurab also cost the party dearly in Assam.
Sarma was in Congress when the party took the decision of forging an alliance with Bodoland Peoples Front in 2011 and registered a landslide victory by winning 79 seats.
Though the strategy was formulated by Sarma, the AICC gave credit to Tarun Gogoi for the third consecutive win of the party in the state. The ignorance of AICC led to a situation that the Congress not only severed its ties with the BPF but also created a situation to expel Sarma.
Sarma, who joined the BJP in 2015 after being reprimanded for his bid to remove Tarun Gogoi, was the first to advise BJP to forge an alliance with the Bodoland Peoples Front.
The population of Bodo voters may be 12.5 per cent but their presence is spread over 50 Assembly segments.
The Congress also failed to realise that dividing the opposition would be beneficial. The dismal performance of the Gogoi government to check corruption and failure in planning people-friendly development have also contributed to the Congress’ defeat.
It is significant that most Congress ministers and leaders representing different communities have also lost the elections.
