Photo: Himanta Biswa Sarma (Facebook)
Guwahati, Sept 18: With the by-polls for the Sidli constituency on the horizon, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed confidence in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) alliance.
“Sidli has always been a stronghold for the BJP-UPPL alliance, and we are poised to perform well in the upcoming by-polls. UPPL’s Jayanata Basumatary’s historic victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Kokrajhar is a testament to our strength here,” Chief Minister Sarma said during his visit to Chirang district on Wednesday.
During his visit, the Chief Minister participated in a meeting to strategise for the Sidli by-polls.
“We need to be well-prepared. I will meet with the people and discuss the by-polls. As I mentioned earlier, of the five constituencies going for by-polls, AGP will field a candidate in Bongaigaon, Sidli will be contested by UPPL, and BJP will contest in Bihali, Dholai, and Samuguri,” he stated.
Acknowledging that Sidli will be a three-way contest among BJP-UPPL, Congress, and the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF), the Chief Minister stressed that there is no divergence in the agenda between BJP and UPPL.
“Both parties are working for the development of Assam’s indigenous people, and there is no difference in our agenda,” he added.
Chief Minister Sarma also noted that while BJP will not interfere in discussions between UPPL and BPF, it hopes for a successful resolution if at all.
Earlier, on September 15, the three National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners—BJP, AGP, and UPPL—formed a joint coordination committee to manage their strategies for the Sidli Assembly constituency by-election.
“There is significant enthusiasm among our party members. We are united in our effort to ensure our candidate's success in the by-poll,” Minister Ashok Singhal had said.
