Jayanta Bora may rejoin BJP after contesting Behali by-poll on Congress ticket: CPI (M-L)

Biswanath, Oct 21: With just hours to go before the announcement of Asom Sonmilito Morcha candidate for the Behali by-poll constituency, Vivek Das, the state secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), CPI (M-L), has hit out at BJP turncoat Jayanta Bora, who is in talks to secure a Congress ticket.

Das, while addressing the press on Monday, accused Bora of having ulterior motives of quitting the BJP ahead of the by-polls, suggesting that if Bora receives a ticket from Congress, he would likely return to the BJP after the elections.

“There is every possibility of Jayanta Bora joining the BJP after contesting the elections on a Congress party ticket,” Das said, highlighting the ongoing criminal case against Bora as a red flag.

Das, who is a potential candidate from the seat, also drew attention to a concerning “pattern” among local politicians, citing former Behali MLA Pallab Lochan Das and Congress members Rupak Sharma and Nagen Goyala, who all switched allegiances to the BJP after previously contesting elections in Congress tickets.

“This trend raises questions about the sincerity of those switching parties for political gain,” he added.

CPI (M-L) also reiterated the importance of collaboration among the 18 political parties that formed the Asom Sanmilito Morcha (ASM), highlighting that it was agreed during discussions that CPI (M-L) should be allocated one seat.

The controversy surrounding Bora's potential candidacy has garnered attention from within the Congress party itself.

Earlier on Sunday, Biswanath District Congress President Dilip Baruah also criticised the idea of Bora receiving a ticket, stating, “We have been working for the party for many years. Bora recently resigned from the BJP, and if he joins Congress and receives a ticket, then it will not be fair.”

He even threatened to stage a mass head-shaving protest if Bora is granted a ticket from Behali.

Adding to the tensions, grassroots Congress workers in the Behali constituency have threatened to resign en masse if Bora is awarded the ticket for the upcoming by-polls from the seat.