IT IS an uphill battle and the opponent is formidable, but Congress is more confident than three months ago and hopes to give the BJP a tough fight in Assam. For the first time in recent history, the party has tasked its top ministers with electoral duties turning the corner in other states: Bhupesh Baghel of Chhattisgarh in Assam and Ashok Gehlot of Rajasthan in Kerala.
And Baghel, sources said, is replicating the Chhattisgarh model in Assam.
His three key advisers, Vinod Verma, Ruchir Garg and Rajesh Tiwari, are stationed in Assam, and more than two dozen teams comprising local leaders from the Chhattisgarh Congress have moved to Assam to oversee the election efforts. This is in addition to the campaign already implemented by the head of AICC, Jitendra Singh, who is considered close to Rahul Gandhi.
Assam’s congressional leaders said that factionalism in the state unit, which was rampant, has been checked, but they keep their fingers crossed as ticket distribution has always been complicated. “He (Jitendra Singh) had taken us all to a resort about two months ago and we sat together for several hours. His message was very clear. The party will not project anyone as a candidate for Chief Minister. Each leader will get a seat on election-related panels, but how we conduct ourselves while fulfilling our assigned task will decide our fate, ”a senior leader told The Indian Express.
It was decided that all senior leaders should conduct simultaneous bus yatras that concluded last week. Singh nudged four senior congressional leaders, Gaurav Gogoi, Sushmita Dev, Debabrata Saikia and Pradyut Bordoloi, to perform these yatras. While Bordoloi started in Bordua Satra, the birthplace of Srimanta Sankardev, in Nagaon district, Saikia started yatra in Sivasagar city, Gogoi in Guwahati and Sushmita Dev in Silchar.
In addition to the Chhattisgarh team, Singh has delegated four AICC officials: AICC Secretaries Anirudh Singh, Prithviraj Prabhakar Sathe and Vikas Upadhyay and Deputy Secretary Aditya Sharma, who are stationed in various areas.
The Chhattisgarh teams that arrived in Assam in January (Baghel was appointed lead observer for campaign management and coordination in the first week of January) had held “sankalp shivirs” for the booth workers. Party leaders say that except for a few Assembly constituencies in the Bodo region, such shivirs were held in all seats. The idea, sources said, was to “recharge” the workers.
The Assam cadre had been demoralized. The party’s electoral fortunes in Assam have not improved since 2014. It was only able to win three seats in the Lok Sabha in 2014, a tally it also held in 2019. Following the defeat in the 2016 Assembly elections, the party has been unable to regroup. The BJP recently made impressive strides in the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) and Tiwa Autonomous Council (TAC) elections, both in regions where it had performed poorly in the past. The passing of former Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has also left a void, as Congress cannot boast of a leader who has similar attractiveness, acceptability and stature across Assam.
But Baghel’s idea of shivirs, similar to Chhattisgarh’s when he was president of the CCP, has excited workers on the ground. “The same model was replicated in Assam. Booth level workers received training on various aspects including distribution of voter lists, voter identification, floating voter segregation and targeting them… issues to be raised and getting feedback, ”said one leader.
Congress has conducted multiple polls, the sources said. “To our surprise, we found a lot of consternation among the people regarding the Citizenship Amendment Act which of course bans Barack Valley. There was a high level of discontent among the tea garden workers. There were also problems such as unemployment and rising prices, ”said one leader. Consequently, the party decided to focus more on Upper Assam and take a position on the CAA.
“In most constituencies, there will be a team from Chhattisgarh that will oversee the campaign, including things like graffiti on the walls and the distribution of publicity material,” said one leader.
The alliance with AIUDF, some of the congressional leaders feared could backfire. But congressional strategists say it may not, and the “mahajath” was formed to create the impression that the opposition may offer a viable alternative. “There is discontent. But it can be harvested if voters feel there is a credible alternative, ”said one strategist. The inclusion of the Bodoland Popular Front (BPF) in the congressional-led alliance, after it severed ties with the BJP, has been a shot in the arm. Congress expects BPF to help shift votes in favor of the alliance in the Bodoland Territorial Region, which has about 15 seats in the Assembly.
In Upper Assam, the party is struggling to make up lost ground. The party had suffered a setback when former Golaghat and MLA minister Ajanta Neog and Lakhipur MLA Rajdeep Gowala joined the BJP in December. They may be gone. But the workers have not gone with them. The picture of Congress is still there. So his departure will not affect us much, ”said Upadhyay, who is stationed in Upper Assam.
Party leaders said the decision to bring Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to the Upper Assam and North Bank regions was to repair the damage and show that the party is serious in its electoral efforts. Rahul Gandhi had also visited Upper Assam. “The tribes and workers of the tea garden still associate with Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. Priyanka’s visit was to take advantage of that recovery value, ”said one leader.
“It is still a difficult fight, but we believe the situation has improved from what it was three or four months ago,” said a senior congressional leader. By 2016, the BJP had won 60 seats, while allies BPF and AGP had won 12 and 14, respectively. The Congress was reduced to 26 while the AIUDF obtained 13. The percentage of votes of the BJP stood at 29.5 percent, AGP 8.1 percent and BPF 3.9 percent. Congress obtained a 30.9 percent share of the vote, compared to 39 percent in pre-Assembly elections. AIUDF achieved a 13.05 percent share of the vote.
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