A constituent of the Congress-led ‘Mahajot’ has suffered a setback in the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) two days after the grand alliance failed to dislodge the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies from power in Assam.
Four BTC members of the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) switched over to United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL), an ally of the BJP, on Tuesday evening. This has stripped the BPF of its status as the single largest party in the council.
The BPF, a former ally of the BJP, had contested the Assam Assembly elections as a part of the 10-party ‘Mahajot’. It won four Assembly seats, down from the 12 it bagged in 2016. The big losers included three Ministers in the outgoing government.
The four who joined the UPPL are Saikong Basumatary from Chirang council, Prabhat Basumatary from Sobhaijhar, Dhananjay Basumatary from Manas Serfang and Bizit Gwra Narzary from Darangajuli council.
Their joining increased the UPPL’s strength in BTC to 20, four of them nominated. The BPF’s count decreased to 13.
The UPPL-headed alliance now has 27 elected members, 10 of them belonging to the BJP and one of Gana Suraksha Party. The Congress had won a seat but the member joined the BJP soon after the election results were declared in December 2020.
