Former Assam CM Mahanta To Contest From Barhampur

By K Anurag

Guwahati, Mar 9 : The Asom Gana Parishad on Monday announced the second list of 35 poll candidates which included names of 17 MLAs including the former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta. The former chief minister is contesting from his home ground of Barhampur in Nagaon district. The AGP earlier announced names of 40 poll candidates.

Announcing the list of party poll candidates, the regional party's president Chandra Mohan Patowary admitted that its efforts to forge a 'grand alliance' of all opposition political parties in Assam for the forthcoming Assembly election could not bear fruit because the Left parties and All India  United Democratic Front, a conglomerate of minority groups, were averse to be part of any alliance that will have BJP as one of the constituents.

He said the regional party floated the idea of a grand alliance on the basis of the reality that whenever Congress came to power in the state it could poll a vote share on around 30 per cent as against the combined opposition vote share of around 70 per cent.

The Communist Party of India and CPM and the AIUDF see the Bharatiya Janata Party  as a communal party and don't want to be part of any alliance with the saffron party thereby dooming the AGP's attempt for a 'grand anti-Congress alliance', to failure.

However, in tune with its spirit of the 'grand alliance', the AGP has decided not the field candidates against the stalwarts of the CPI, CPM, AIUDF and the BJP in Nazira, Sarbhog, Jamunamukh and Bihali respectively.

Veteran CPI leader Dhrupad Borgohain is contesting from Nazira, CPM's Manoranjan Talukdar is contesting from Saorbhog while AIUDF chief Sirajuddin Ajmal is in the fray from Jamunamukh. The state BJP president Ranjit Dutta is contesting from Bihali constituency.

Meanwhile, the AGP lodged a complaint with the visiting chief election commissioner against the ruling Congress accusing the latter of violating the model code of conduct.