GUWAHATI: The man under the spotlight in the forthcoming Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) election, Promod Boro, supremo of United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL) which is locked in a straight fight with the Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF), questioned the delay in holding the council elections.
Speaking to G Plus, Promod Boro, Ex-President of All Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU), who spearheaded the Bodoland statehood movement and is one of the key contenders in the upcoming BTC polls said, “If the elections are being held in other places… why we can’t we have the council elections here? The election commission should review the situation and hold elections maintaining COVID protocols.”
Boro’s party, UPPL, is contesting in as many as 40 seats in the election, the dates for which are yet to be announced.
“We are geared up for the elections as and when it will happen… but hope that it takes place soon since the council has remained defunct for seven months,” Boro said.
The polls to the 40-seat tribal council scheduled in April last were deferred by the Assam State Election Commission in view of the coronavirus pandemic. They were earlier scheduled to be held on 4th April.
Boro who has gained in strength and is also tipped to be close to the BJP said that his party will go all alone in the elections. But in the post-poll scenario, if it needs a helping hand, it won’t shy away from any party.
“We are confident that we will overthrow the BPF misrule…. but we are also open to alliance in the post-poll scenario if we need numbers to form the council,” Boro said.
With no dates announced yet for the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) and restrictions on outdoor gatherings, campaigning is going on in full swing in the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD).
In the past few weeks, several poll rallies have been organised by political parties in the western and northern Assam districts, with thousands of mask-less supporters and no social distancing norms. Even an FIR has been filed against BJP minister of state, Pijush Hazarika, for violating COVID-19 norms in the Bodoland by holding mass gatherings.
However, this has not deterred political parties from their campaigning, with some like the UPPL even conducting door-to-door campaigns.