AGP non-commital on alliance with BJP

(From right to left) AGP President Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, former Punjab Chief Minister Surjit Singh Barnala, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and former Meghalaya Chief Minster Donkupar Roy at the inaugural session of the regional meet of the Regional Political Parties of North Easter Region in Guwahati. A file photo: Ritu Raj Konwar.

AGP president and former Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was non-commital over his party’s alliance with BJP in the Lok Sabha polls on Tuesday, saying the party has not given a “thought” to the issue yet.

“We have not thought over the issue. Party’s top leaders will sit together soon and take a decision on it,” he said in New Delhi.

Mr. Mahanta said the BJP has not yet formally approached the AGP for an electoral alliance in Assam.

“I am not ruling out nor ruling in. Let us discuss among ourselves first. Neither BJP approached us nor we have gone to them for any alliance yet,” he said.

There are 14 Lok Sabha seats in Assam.

The AGP and BJP had an electoral alliance for the 2009 Lok Sabha polls in Assam in which BJP got four seats while AGP got just one.

However, the alliance did not last long and both the parties split soon with AGP leaving the NDA.

Current BJP state President Sarbananda Sonowal is a former AGP Lok Sabha member and many of the state BJP leaders are former AGP members including Guwahati MP and a Minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, Bijoya Chakraborty.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will address a public rally in Guwahati on February 8, his first in the Northeast after he was appointed the BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate, where he may give hints about possible alliance in the region.