GUWAHATI: The Asom Sonmilito Morcha (ASOM) has decided to continue its battle against the BJP despite a rift with the Congress party.
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Lurinjyoti Gogoi, chief of the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), said in a press conference on Thursday, October 24, “The communal BJP must be eradicated from Assam, and we remain united in this fight. Yes, Congress betrayed us by announcing their candidate without any prior notice, but we will carry on without them.”
The controversy happened after Congress named Jayanta Borah as its candidate for the Behali constituency in the upcoming bypolls, without consulting its other parties of ASOM . This has caused significant friction within the alliance, with Raijor Dal President and Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi calling the Congress decision a "stab in the back."
"This is a stab in the back of the 15 political parties that were part of this alliance," Akhil Gogoi said. "This is a historic betrayal by the Congress," he asserted. "After promising that the candidate for Behali would be chosen from within the alliance, they nominated someone who was aligned with the BJP until today. This is a repeat of Congress's power-hungry ways."
In response to the situation, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) [CPI-ML] has nominated Lakhikanta Kurmi for the Behali bye-election. The alliance is yet to decide on contesting the other four bypoll-bound seats. Despite the split, the ASOM alliance remains committed to its goal of challenging the BJP’s influence in Assam.
