The BJP-forged alliance won the composite floor test in Assam’s autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) on Thursday amid alleged violence and unruly scenes.
United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) president Pramod Boro, who was appointed BTC’s Chief Executive Member on December 15, garnered the support of 22 of the 40 members in the council. The UPPL heads the three-party alliance that includes the BJP and Gana Suraksha Party (GSP).
On December 22, the Gauhati High Court ordered the floor test after the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) challenged the appointment of Mr. Boro and his team without the Governor – the constitutional head of the BTC – inviting the BPF that had emerged as the single largest party with 17 seats after the two-phase elections for the council.
The BPF, unhappy with the way the floor test was conducted by the Pro-tem Speaker, has decided to go to the court again.
‘HC guidelines defied’
“We had sought voting through secret ballot. The High Court’s guidelines were defied. We saw and heard nothing. There was no floor test and the agenda remains unfinished,” Mr. Mohilary said.
The BPF members expressed their displeasure by shouting slogans and holding placards alleging “murder of democracy”.
After winning the floor test, Mr. Bodo slammed the BPF for creating “violence” during the proceedings in the House. “They [BPF] did not allow peaceful conduct of the oath-taking ceremony. They tried to unleash violence in the way they had ruled the BTC,” he said.
He asserted that the UPPL-BJP-GSP alliance had won the people’s trust for providing a people’s government. Assam’s Finance and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had cobbled up the alliance soon after a fractured verdict for the BTC on December 12.
“There will be democracy. We all have to work together to wipe off the undemocratic forces. Our coalition government will establish peace. Every community will get equal rights and respect. Our priority will be to solve the problems of the poor, irrespective of communities, in our region,” Mr. Boro said.
Created in 2003
The BTC, created in 2003 as a political alternative to the Bodoland statehood demand, falls under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution and governs four districts that form the Bodoland Territorial Region.
The BPF under Mr. Mohilary ruled the BTC for 17 years from February 2003 to April 2020 when the council was dissolved.
For all the differences at the council level, the BPF and the BJP are allies at the State-level. They have been ruling Assam since May 2016 along with the Asom Gana Parishad.
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