Guwahati (Assam) [India], May 10 : BJP Legislature Party leader and NDA Legislature Party in Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Sunday, called on Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya and formally staked a claim to form the government in the State.
The meeting comes after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) got a landslide victory in the Assam polls with the State set to have its third successive NDA government.
Earlier today, Sarma was elected as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party and the NDA Legislature Party in Assam ahead of the formation of the new state government.
The announcement was made by Union Minister JP Nadda after a meeting of newly elected NDA legislators in Guwahati.
Addressing the meeting, Nadda said eight resolutions proposing Sarma's name as leader were moved by senior party leaders, including Ranjeet Kumar Dass, Biswajit Daimary, Ajanta Neog, Rameswar Teli, Rajdeep Roy, Ashok Singhal, Pijush Hazarika and Chakradhar Gogoi.
Nadda added that MLAs from the NDA, including BJP, AGP and BPF, were present, and leaders such as Atul Bora of AGP and Rihan Daimary of BPF also supported the proposal.
He further said all members unanimously backed Sarma, following which he formally announced him as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party and NDA Legislature Party.
In an address after his election, Sarma said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has blessed us to form the government in Assam for a third consecutive term. I express my heartfelt gratitude to the Prime Minister. The people have blessed us, and we will carry out development work over the next five years."
He also thanked Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president Nitin Nabin.
Sarma said the NDA Council of Ministers will take oath on May 12 in the presence of Prime Minister Modi.
"I request the people of Assam to continue blessing us in the future as well. We aim to take Assam forward and make it one of the most developed states in the country. I express my gratitude to Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia. We will meet the Governor of Assam to stake our claim to form the next government," he said.
Sarma also expressed gratitude to JP Nadda and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on behalf of the people of Assam. "I also express my gratitude to JP Nadda ji, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini on behalf of the people of Assam," he said.
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured a strong mandate in Assam, winning 102 seats against the opposition's 75 seats, positioning Sarma to take over as Chief Minister. The BJP won 82 seats, while its allies AGP and BOPF secured 10 seats each, taking the NDA's total to 102. While the opposition Mitrajoot of INC secured 19 seats, Raijor Dal secured only 2 seats, while AJP failed to secure even a single seat. Meanwhile, AIUDF managed to get 2 seats.
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