Prashanta Barua
Less than ten months remain for the Lok Sabha polls. But Assam pre poll political landscape is on the boil after the Election Commission published the draft of the delimited Assembly and parliamentary constituencies.
The draft has kept the total number of Lok Sabha and Assembly seats unchanged. But has proposed mass changes in the district, sub divisional and block levels touching off a seismic waves of protest and anger in many places across the state.
At a glance, the draft has renamed 3 Lok Sabha seats keeping 1 seat each
reserved for SC and ST. Similarly, in the 126 member State Assembly 20 seats have been proposed anew to be diluted 20 seats generating much hue and cry. Of these 9 seats are proposed to be reserved for SC, 19 for ST category.
Ruling BJP and its principal allay AGP leadership have welcomed it while most if the Opposition parties have opposed it and called it a brazen attempt to take away the rights of the indigenous people appeasing the Hindu immigrants.
A day after the draft was put in the public domain, Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma strongly advocated the draft and called it an attempt to safeguard the interest of the indigenous.
“Why should not I welcome it. The rights of our indigenous people need to be safeguard. I do not have anything to oppose it even my home constituency Jalukbari has been diluted,” said Dr Sarma in Guwahati.
The AGP leadership has not opposed it. But the party’s MLA from Amguri MLA Pradeep Hazarika has opposed it saying that he would protest the move. “Amguri is considered one of the oldest names and I would raise the issue. Why Nazira was not diluted? ,” said Hazarika.
The Congress has strongly opposed it alleging it a blatant attempt to help BJP retain the power. “We would strongly register our protest. We have been opposing the entire exercise on the basis of the 2001 census figure,” said Assam Congress president Bhupen Bora.
Taking a potshot against the Chief Minister, Bora said CM Dr Sarma aims at extracting benefits for himself and not not for his party at all.
All India United Democratic Front is equally unhappy with the draft and party chief Badaruddin Ajmal said he would move the court against the move. “I will move the court very soon. We won’t admit it in this format,” said Ajmal.
Same amount of anger is visible in the face of Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi, who alleged that the dominance of the Ahoms will be at risk, if this is allowed to happened. “We won’t sit idle. Will protest,” said the Raijor Dal leader.
Meanwhile, the Assam Trinamool Congress unit has vehemently opposed it alleging that the entire exercise was influenced by the ruling BJP. In a statement, State president Ripun Bora questioned the manner in which the delimitation draft was prepared in a haste on the basis of the 2001 census figures which is not acceptable at all.
On the other hand, the All Assam Students Union (AASU) has welcomed the draft saying it would help the state ensure the rights of the indigenous people. But the student leaders have opposed the move to dilute so many assembly seats in the name of delimitation.
The Election Commission heard the political parties and organizations in March this year. The Congress party boycotted the exercise alleging that delimitation process on the basis of 2001 census figure was not acceptable.
