Akhil Gogoi announces Raijor Dal to contest 36 seats in 2026, criticises CM Sarma
Raijor Dal’s president Akhil Gogoi called CM Himanta Biswa Sarma’s SIT remarks a “political farce.”
Akhil Gogoi in Tezpur (AT Image)
Tezpur, September 13: Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi on Saturday announced that his party will contest in 36 constituencies in the upcoming 2026 Assam Legislative Assembly elections, asserting its preparedness to emerge as a decisive political force.
The announcement was made at the party’s expanded executive meeting, held at Bihguri Chandranath Sharma Bhawan in Tezpur, where more than 200 representatives participated.
Declaring his own candidature from Sivasagar, Gogoi emphasised that the Raijor Dal would continue to support the idea of opposition unity but demanded mutual respect in seat-sharing negotiations. Without naming Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, he expressed dissatisfaction with Congress’s approach.
“The body language of the Congress regarding friendship is not satisfactory. Raijor Dal has always stood for unity, we continue to do so, but the party that should have taken the lead has not shown the sincerity required. We seek only respect—there must be a respectable understanding of constituencies and a vision for Assam’s political future,” Gogoi said.
On the party’s electoral strategy, Gogoi asserted that Raijor Dal has grown strong enough to either win or be the main challenger in at least 36 constituencies. “We are confident of contesting as a serious rival and securing victories. The people’s party has gathered strength, and we are ready,” he added.
Turning to the recent Special Investigation Team (SIT) report controversy, Gogoi launched a scathing attack on Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, calling his statements a political farce.
“He is a politician without gravity. He had claimed that on September 10 he would reveal the SIT report, arrest Gaurav Gogoi, or resign and leave home. Nothing of the sort happened. Now he says he will examine the report seriously, this shows there is nothing in it,” Gogoi remarked.
He further dismissed the chief minister’s comments on “suspected citizens,” calling them a political ploy.
“There are no suspected citizens in the world. People are either citizens or non-citizens. To keep someone in a suspected category is only to create a vote bank. The chief minister’s remarks are nothing but rhetoric,” Gogoi said.