Assam 2026 polls: Congress opens ticket race, applications invited till Jan 20
Prescribed forms, available online, must be submitted by January 20 with a non-refundable Rs 50,000 fee
Bipul Gogoi, general secretary (organisation) of APCC, became the first aspirant to file his application.
Guwahati, Jan 5: The Assam Congress, on Monday, formally set the ball rolling on its preparations for the 2026 Assembly elections, opening the candidate application process at Rajiv Bhawan in Guwahati and signalling the party’s organisational push ahead of the polls.
The application window will remain open until January 20, with aspirants from all Assembly constituencies invited to seek party tickets by submitting the prescribed form along with a non-refundable fee of Rs 50,000. The application forms are available in the party's official website, party workers informed.
Bipul Gogoi, general secretary (organisation) of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), became the first aspirant to file his application, seeking the Congress ticket from the No. 119 Tingkhong Legislative Assembly constituency.
Expressing confidence after submitting his papers, he said the electorate was keen on political change under the leadership of APCC president Gaurav Gogoi.
“Under Gaurav Gogoi’s leadership, the people of Assam want change. To protect democracy and the interests of the constituency, people will vote accordingly,” he said.
Another aspirant, Supreme Court advocate Abu Taher Ali Bepari, applied for candidacy from the No. 8 Dhubri constituency, located along the India–Bangladesh border.
Bepari said the electoral contest in Lower Assam would be shaped by a fight against the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), which he described as the BJP’s “B-team”.
“In Lower Assam, our fight is not with the BJP but with the AIUDF. Since the latter is a non-factor this election, we will register a massive victory under the leadership of Gaurav Gogoi,” he said, adding that the constituency currently has over 31,000 voters.
Even as the application process got underway, the Congress sharpened its attack on the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.
Dhubri Lok Sabha MP Rakibul Hussain claimed that voters across the state were “thoroughly fed up” with the ruling dispensation and determined to vote it out in the 2026 elections.
Speaking at a press briefing in Kokrajhar on Sunday after meetings with district Congress workers and representatives of social and student organisations, Hussain said the party has constituted multiple committees to streamline its election strategy. These include panels for manifesto preparation, campaigning, coordination and publicity.
“These committees will engage with the public, understand their grievances and chalk out a concrete roadmap to defeat the ruling government,” Hussain said.
With the candidate application process now underway, the Congress has formally moved into election mode, laying the groundwork for both organisational consolidation and its campaign narrative ahead of the high-stakes 2026 Assembly polls.