Opposition's seat-sharing arithmetic may cost Congress LoP post: Assam CM

Guwahati, Feb 26: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Thursday, claimed that ongoing seat-sharing tensions among Opposition parties could jeopardise the Congress’s prospects of securing the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) post after the upcoming Assembly elections.

In the 126-member Assam Assembly, a party requires a minimum of 24 seats to stake claim to the LoP position. However, Sarma argued that the arithmetic emerging from Opposition negotiations may leave the Congress short of that threshold.

“See, the tussle between the Opposition parties and the Congress is over the miya Muslim-dominated 22 seats. For instance, Congress gives four to Raijor Dal and one to AJP. In Parbatjhora, Hagrama Mohilary will anyways win. So, that leaves out six seats off Congress’ reach. So, the Congress is now left with 16 seats. But to get the LoP post, they need 24 seats,” Sarma said.

He further contended that in order to bridge the gap, the Congress would need to secure at least six seats in constituencies dominated by indigenous communities, a task he described as difficult under current political conditions.

“So, even if Raijor Dal and AJP request the Speaker, Congress won’t be able to claim the post of the LoP as they would need 24 seats under their symbol,” he asserted.

The remarks come amid reported progress in seat-sharing talks between the Congress and the Asom Jatiya Parishad (AJP), while discussions with Raijor Dal remain deadlocked.

On Wednesday, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief Gaurav Gogoi indicated that the induction of former Congress members into Raijor Dal has complicated negotiations.

Turning to the BJP’s preparations for the polls, Sarma said the party had completed internal elections at the block and constituency levels to identify potential candidates.

The process, he said, “Will now move to the State Election Committee for further deliberation.”

“Our process is progressing well. However, single candidates’ names have come up in many seats,” the Chief Minister said, signalling that the ruling party is moving ahead with its selection strategy even as the Opposition grapples with alliance arithmetic.

With seat-sharing talks still fluid and electoral calculations sharpening, the battle for numbers and the LoP post appears set to intensify in the run-up to the polls.