GUWAHATI, May 13 � The Congress camp is elated after the landslide victory in the elections to the Assam Legislative Assembly, while, the sulking Opposition parties accused the Congress of indulging in tampering of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
One of the Congress stalwarts Himanta Biswa Sarma, who won from Jaluakbari constituency with a record margin of over 77,600 votes, said that he is obliged to the voters for returning him to the Assembly with such a high margin. He said that the victory would make him more responsive to the needs of the people.
Sarma said that the meeting of the Congress legislature party to elect its leader would be held within the next couple of days and senior Congress leader Digvijoy Singh is scheduled to arrive tomorrow to attend the meeting.
Sarma pointed out the Opposition has a role to play in a democracy, but as the next Assembly would not have a strong Opposition, the Congress would have to be more cautious and the challenge before the party would be much more.
Though the Congress is in a position to form the Government on its own, Sarma said that its alliance with the BPF would continue.
Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) president Chandra Mohan Patowary, who lost from Dharmapur constituency, said that though the results �are very absurd beyond the party�s expectations,� the mandate of the people would be accepted and honoured by his party.
Explaining his reservation, Patowary said that people responded very positively to the AGP. Thousands of people spontaneously came to the party meetings covering long distances on foot. �This is what makes us take the results with reservations. The party will decide its next course of action on the issue after discussing it in the party forum shortly,� he said.
On his personal defeat, Patowary said that he could not visit his constituency and nurture it properly because of party responsibilities. �I could go to the constituency only on two days during the election period. Party works kept me busy elsewhere and some detachment with the people of the constituency might have occurred,� he said.
BJP state unit president Ranjit Dutta said that his party had accepted the mandate of the people �with protest.� The results are absurd and the ruling party must have tampered with the EVMs as there was an upsurge against the Congress before the elections. �That I had to concede defeat at a margin of 20,000 votes is simply unbelievable,� he said. The party will decide its next course of action shortly, he added.
All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) president Badruddin Ajmal said, �I am hundred percent sure that the EVMs were tampered with by the ruling party. We have lodged complaints with the appropriate authorities earlier.�
However, Ajmal thanked the people for the verdict, saying, �We are grateful to the people for making us the second largest party in the State Assembly.� He also alleged that some insiders betrayed the party in the Barak valley, or else, it would have won there four to five seats more.
Ganashakti president Ronoj Pegu said that the results were unbelievable and the present situation is the result of ruling party�s tempering with the EVMs. The Ganashakti has requested the AGP to convene an all party meeting to chalk out a common action plan on the issue, Pegu said.