AGP’s candidate list signals strategic shift amid Assam polls, bets on new entrants

Guwahati, March 22: Born out of the Assam Movement and once a torchbearer of Assamese regionalism, the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) – which formed government in the State twice –now faces a significant internal shift in its electoral approach, which is well reflected in its list of candidate for the Assembly polls.

The party, which burst onto the political scene in 1985 after the signing of the Assam Accord with the core agenda of detecting and expelling illegal immigrants, went on to form government in 1985 and again in 1996 under the leadership of Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.

Against that historical backdrop, the current candidate selection has led to the exclusion of four sitting MLAs and the induction of several recent entrants, including 13 leaders from a religious minority community, highlighting a significant shift in the party’s electoral strategy within the alliance framework.

This time, the AGP will be contesting in 26 constituencies as per seat-sharing among the NDA constituents.

Of the nine sitting MLAs, only five have been renominated, while four sitting legislators have been denied tickets, marking a substantial churn within the party ranks.

Notably, the party’s 26-member list includes 13 leaders from a religious minority community, many of whom are recent entrants.

AGP president Atul Bora has been renominated from Bokakhat, while working president Keshab Mahanta will contest again from Kaliabor.

Sitting MLAs Diptimoyee Choudhury (Bongaigaon) and Prithiraj Rava (Tezpur) have also been renominated.

Following delimitation, former Amguri MLA Pradip Hazarika has been fielded from Sivasagar.

However, several senior leaders have been dropped, including Ramendra Narayan Kalita (West Guwahati, now Guwahati Central), Ponakan Baruah (Chabua-Lahowal), Renupoma Rajkhowa (Teok), and Bhavendra Nath Bharali (Dergaon), underlining the extent of internal reshuffling.

In contrast, a number of new entrants have been accommodated, some within hours of joining the party.

These include Jibesh Roy (Bilasipara), Basanta Das (Naoboicha-SC), Khalilur Rahman (Lahorighat) and Sahabuddin Mazumdar (Binnakandi).

Former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Prakash Chandra Das has been fielded from Hajo-Sualkuchi, while former All India United Democratic Front leaders Karim Uddin Barbhuiya (Sonai) and Zakir Hussain Laskar (Algapur-Katlicherra) have also been given tickets soon after switching sides.

“The pattern points to a growing precedence for parachute candidates in the party, with immediate electoral considerations outweighing long-standing organisational loyalty,” said a senior party leader from Lower Assam who was eyeing a party ticket.

This trend becomes more pronounced in the context of the BJP-led alliance’s seat-sharing arrangement, under which AGP is contesting in 26 seats, limiting its ability to accommodate incumbents and traditional claimants.

“At the same time, the party’s expansion into new areas, particularly in the Barak Valley, is being viewed as a function of accommodating new entrants within the alliance framework rather than organic organisational growth,” party sources added.

The fallout has been visible.

Senior leader Ramendra Narayan Kalita resigned from the post of party general secretary following the denial of a ticket, signalling discontent at the higher levels.

At the grassroots, protests were witnessed in several constituencies, though these are being treated within the party as routine consequences of alliance politics.

The situation is particularly evident in Upper Assam, where AGP’s reduced footprint under the seat-sharing arrangement has led to resentment among local units in districts such as Dibrugarh and Tinsukia.

Beyond the immediate electoral implications, the developments raise a broader political question.

For a party that emerged from a mass movement centred on identity and illegal immigration, and long positioned itself as the principal voice of Assamese regionalism, the increasing reliance on leaders with limited organisational grounding, coupled with a changing social composition, points to a shift in its political trajectory.