LS polls: Congress-BPF combine to contest 14 seats

GUWAHATI: Rejecting All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) as its second alliance partner, the Congress will fight the Lok Sabha election with its old ally, Bodoland People's Front, in all 14 seats of the state. In 2009, Congress had won seven seats and BPF one.
At the final meeting for finalization of candidates, the central election committee of Congress on Friday decided to not just field candidates in 13 seats, leaving Kokrajhar for BPF, but take the fight right into AIUDF chief and sitting MP from Dhubri Badruddin Ajmal's home turf.A party source said AICC president Sonia Gandhi asked her political adviser Ahmed Patel to ask state forest and environment minister Rockybul Hussain to fight against Ajmal in Dhubri constituency.
"Chief minister Tarun Gogoi has raised objection to Hussain's candidature. The chief minister feels that if Hussain is fielded as a candidate, it will have an affect on the party's campaigning, especially in minority areas," the source said. A party insider said the election committee has finalized 10 out of 13 seats till late evening. Congress has re-nominated six of its seven sitting MPs, which include DoNER minister Paban Singh Ghatowar, Union minister of state for tribal welfare Rani Narah from Lakhimpur, Lalit Mohan Suklabaidya from Karimganj, Bijoy Krishna Handique from Jorhat, Ismail Hussain from Barpeta and Biren Singh Ingti from Autonomous District constituency.
The lone sitting MP, who has not been retained, is Gogoi's brother Dip Gogoi from Koliabor. He has been replaced by the chief minister's son, Gaurav, who is making his political debut. Congress has also nominated three other new faces in Lok Sabha elections - daughter of former party heavyweight Santosh Mohan Dev Sushmita Dev from Silchar, Bhupen Borah from Tezpur and Jonjonali Baruah from Nagaon. All three are sitting MLAs. The source said last-minute discussions are on for three seats of Mangaldai, Dhubri and Guwahati. "In all three seats, the situation is different," the source said.
In Guwahati, son of social welfare minister Akon Borah's Manas, who recently won the primary election from the seat, is among the top contenders but the steering committee is yet to clear his name.