Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Thursday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will maintain its alliance with coalition partners, the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL), for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
During a press conference in Guwahati, Sarma stated, "Our parties have decided to continue with the present alliance and contest the Lok Sabha elections together." Under this arrangement, the BJP will contest 11 out of the total 14 seats, while the AGP will contest two seats and the UPPL one seat.
Sarma elaborated on the distribution of seats among the allies, revealing that the AGP had initially sought three seats – Kaziranga, Barpeta, and either Dhubri or Karimganj. Following discussions, it was agreed that the AGP would contest in Barpeta and Dhubri. Similarly, the UPPL's request for the Kokrajhar seat was granted during a meeting of senior BJP leaders in Delhi.
Notably, the Kokrajhar seat is currently held by independent Naba Kumar Sarania, while the Barpeta seat is represented by Abdul Khaleque from the Congress, and the AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal is the sitting MP from Dhubri.
Reflecting on the alliance, Sarma emphasized mutual support between the parties, stating, "BJP workers will work to ensure victories for AGP and UPPL candidates, and their workers will help our candidates." Expressing confidence in securing victory, Sarma asserted that the BJP aims to win 11 seats in the upcoming polls.
Furthermore, Sarma hinted at the imminent release of the BJP candidate list, which is expected to feature some new faces. Some sitting MPs have expressed their decision not to contest this time, opting instead to focus on party activities, Sarma revealed.