High-pitched speakers fell silent, workers of tent house and decoration providers started dismantling the dais of election rally venues, bikers displaying party flags and shouting slogans in high decibel broke formation and returned to party offices and election booths of candidates, choppers ferrying star campaigners of parties returned to their bases as a high-voltage campaign for the second and final phase of polling in Assam came to an end on Saturday.
The polling is scheduled for Monday in 64 Assembly constituencies. In all 496 candidates including 47 women candidates are in the fray.
While both the ruling Congress and the Opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) have high and almost equal stakes in these seats, Monday's polling is very crucial for Bodoland People's Front (BPF), the coalition partner of the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) as both the parties were desperate to emerge as kingmakers this time with more numbers.
In the 2006 polls the BPF won 11 seats and the AIUDF seven, with its party president and perfume mogul Badruddin Ajmal winning from both South Salmara and Jamunamukh.
The ruling Congress roped in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, party president Sonia Gandhi, party's youth icon Rahul Gandhi, Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, Union Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khursid, the former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh and cricket star-turned politician Md. Azharuddin, among others for campaign.
