Jatiya Parishad, Raijor Dal to decide who forms next government in Assam says Rasel Hussain

Hitting out at Bharatiya Janata Party over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), the Raijor Dal said that this time it along with alliance partner Assam Jatiya Parishad will decide on who will form the new government in the state.

Raijor Dal has teamed up with the Assam Jatiya Parishad to fight the upcoming Assam assembly polls together.

"BJP is going to lose the election along with alliance partner Asom Gana Parishad (AGP). People of Assam want to get rid of them. The BJP government lied about CAA, NRC, and the public has decided to remove them from power. I assure you that," Rasel Hussain, Vice President, Raijor Dal said on Saturday.

On Friday the Raijor Dal announced that its president, jailed activist Akhil Gogoi will contest the upcoming elections from Sibsagar constituency in Upper Assam. The party also announced the list of 17 candidates it is fielding for the first two phases of the three-phase elections in the state which begins on March 27.

He further said, "This time the regional alliance of Jatiya Parishad and Raijor Dal will decide who will form government in the state after this election.

"Akhil Gogoi is the only person in the northeast since independence who will contest election from jail. Sonowal government had accused Gogoi of false cases and kept him in jail for the past 15 months," he claimed.

Hussain said that their only target is to defeat BJP, "We are not contesting against Mahagathbandhan and that's why we are only contesting on 17 seats in the first two phases," he added.

Gogoi, a peasant leader has been in jail since December 2019 in connection with a National Investigation Agency (NIA) case for his role in the anti-CAA protests in Assam. He was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Raijor Dal was launched as a political outfit in October last year in Guwahati.

In the first phase, Raijor Dal will contest in 12 out of the 47 seats where the first phase election is scheduled for March 27. In the second phase elections on April 1, it has named candidates for six out of 39 seats. Assam will go to the polls in three phases beginning March 27.

The BJP had scripted history in Assam in the last assembly polls and won an absolute majority with its allies, defeating Congress which had been in power in the state for 15 years. It had bagged 60 seats, AGP 14, and BPF 12 seats in the last assembly polls.

( With inputs from ANI )