Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday presided over a Lok Sabha election strategy meeting for Assam and urged party leaders from the State to reach out to people and expose the “misgovernance” of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The issue of aligning with Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) was discussed, but majority of the leaders rejected any such move, said a source.
The alliance issue is crucial as the Congress in Assam, once a party bastion, is seeking to stitch a grand alliance of Opposition parties for the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the State.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, despite strong opposition from the State unit, the central leadership of the Congress has tied up with the AIUDF. Many believe that helped the BJP to “polarise” the election campaign and win the polls.
Those who were present in Tuesday’s meeting included senior leader Rahul Gandhi, general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal, All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Assam Jitendra Singh, Pradesh Congress Committee chief Bhupen Borah, Leader of the Opposition in Assam Assembly, Debabrata Saikia, and Lok Sabha member Gaurav Gogoi, among others.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Kharge said, “In Assam, the Congress party is gearing up for the Lok Sabha elections. We are reinvigorating the organisation. All leaders and workers must reach out to people and expose the misgovernance and incompetence of the BJP.”
“Congress party built Assam, brick by brick, and ensured peace, progress and welfare of the state. Today, the strategy meeting with @INCAssam leaders focussed on some crucial issues facing the state,”Mr Kharge added.
Mr Gandhi said peace and prosperity have been the foundational pillars on which the Congress built a progressive Assam.
“The misgovernance by the BJP’s ‘double-engine’ sarkar has demolished these pillars. We are determined to ensure this trend stops, and the times change for the good for the people,” he said in a Facebook post.
Mr. Venugopal wrote on X, “In Assam, there is an anti-people, corrupt and arrogant government. The State is yearning for peace, communal harmony and genuine governance – not vendetta politics. The Assamese people’s anger against the BJP’s double engine malfunction will be crystal clear in 2024.”
