News Desk: Party-switching ahead of elections is nothing new in Assam’s political landscape. But this time, the wave of defections is hitting Congress with particular force (Congress MLAs Join BJP Assam). Three suspended Congress MLAs — Kamalaksha Dey Purkayastha, Basanta Das, and Shasikanta Das — formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party at Vajpayee Bhavan in Guwahati. The joining ceremony took place in the presence of BJP’s state president Dilip Saikia, Minister Pijush Hazarika, Union Minister of State Pabitra Margherita, and MLA Manab Deka, among other senior leaders.
Also joining BJP on the occasion were Parsha Bob Kalita — son of former Congress MLA Uttara Kalita — and Kankan Nath, who had been seeking a TMC ticket from Kamalapur.
CM Himanta flags sustained support
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, speaking to the media after the event, said, “Today, three MLAs joined BJP. They had been supporting us for the past one to two years. Today they have formally joined the party.”
The defections come close on the heels of former Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhupen Kumar Bora joining the ruling party last month. With yet another round of Congress leaders crossing over before polling begins, the century-old party faces the prospect of a serious blow to its organisational strength.
Union Minister of State Pabitra Margherita described the joins as an endorsement of BJP’s ideology, saying, “Today leaders and workers from various parties, especially Congress, have joined BJP. They have expressed their support for our ideology.”
Congress candidate list draws BJP fire
Reacting to Congress’s first list of 42 candidates released for the upcoming Assam Assembly election, Margherita did not hold back. “There is no novelty in the list announced by the AICC. Out of the 42 candidates, nearly 20 have already been rejected by the people multiple times in previous elections. We have no concern about them,” he said.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma went further on Wednesday, calling the Congress list a “family list” and contrasting it sharply with BJP’s approach, saying, “Someone might call it a list, but I’ll call it a list of nepotism. In contrast, BJP’s list will include grassroots workers. The party is fully prepared for the upcoming election.”
Who is on the Congress list?
The 42-candidate list released by the AICC includes Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Gaurav Gogoi from Jorhat, Bitupan Saikia from Golaghat, Abdul Sobhan Ali Sarkar from Gauripur, Markline Marak (ST) from Goalpara West, Girish Baruah from Bongaigaon, Mahananda Sarkar (SC) from Barpeta, and Ramen Singh Rabha (ST) from Boko-Chhaygaon.
Other notable names on the list are Satyabrata Kalita (Kamalapur), Ripun Bora (Barchala), Mira Borthakur Goswami (Dispur), Diganta Barman (Barksetri), Utpal Gogoi (Sonari), Ajay Kumar Gogoi (Demou), Debabrata Saikia (Nazira), and Ashok Kumar Sarma (Nalbari).
Three women have also found a place in the list — Nandita Das (Hajo-Suwalkuchi, SC), Pallavi Saikia Gogoi (Teok), and Suruchi Roy (Ramkrishna Nagar, SC).
Alliance talks and Rajya Sabha seats
On the alliance front, the Chief Minister confirmed that tie-ups with the BPF and AGP have been finalised, with no friendly contests between alliance partners. On seat-sharing with AGP, he indicated numbers would be similar to last time, subject to finalisation after consultations with New Delhi. An alliance with Rabha Hasong has also been sealed.
Sarma also predicted that BJP would win all three Rajya Sabha seats from Assam uncontested, and added that several AIUDF MLAs are expected to join AGP in the coming day or two.
On BJP’s own candidate list, the Chief Minister said it would be announced after the Prime Minister and the national president give their time, noting, “We have completed all the work.”
Congress Fires First Shot: 42-Name Candidate List Drops for Assam 2026