Guwahati, January 17: The Congress on Friday accused the ruling BJP of attempting to disenfranchise voters in Assam’s Biswanath Assembly constituency by falsely declaring living electors as deceased, triggering a fresh political storm ahead of upcoming electoral exercises.
Addressing a press conference at Rajiv Bhawan in Guwahati, Assam Pradesh Mahila Congress president Mira Borthakur alleged that more than 70 voters at Polling Station No. 133 in the Kumalia area were targeted through Form 7 applications submitted to the Election Commission of India seeking deletion of their names from the electoral roll.
Borthakur claimed that BJP leader Jiten Saikia and a party supporter identified by the surname Lama were behind what she described as a “conspiracy” to remove hundreds of voters from the rolls by wrongly declaring them dead. To substantiate the charge, she displayed 79 Form 7 applications, asserting that the affected individuals are alive and have been exercising their franchise for years.
She further alleged that a majority of the voters shown as deceased belong to the Muslim community, including several young electors in their early 30s. “This is not a clerical error but a deliberate attempt to manipulate the voter list,” Borthakur said.
Taking aim at the state government, the Congress leader accused the BJP of focusing on “propaganda politics” while ignoring pressing public issues. She claimed that the tenure of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was nearing its end and asserted that the next Assam government would be formed under the leadership of Gaurav Gogoi.
Borthakur also alleged that the BJP had deceived both indigenous Assamese people and minority communities under the banner of protecting “jati, mati, bheti” (identity, land and roots), including what she called false assurances on granting Scheduled Tribe status. She further claimed the BJP was attempting to replicate electoral strategies used in other states by relying on “tenant voters” to retain power.
She added that discontent within the ruling party was growing, with several BJP leaders and workers allegedly in touch with the Congress due to “corruption and oppression” under the current regime. “The government’s poor report card is the reason the BJP is now trying to misuse the Election Commission,” she said.
Meanwhile, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee Media and Communication Department chairman Bedabrat Bora raised concerns over unemployment, accusing the BJP-led “double engine” government of failing Assam’s youth. He cited the case of a 30-year-old man from Sonitpur district who died after being attacked while returning home from outside the state, where he had gone in search of work.
Bora alleged that despite repeated claims of large-scale job creation, educated youths from Assam continue to migrate for employment, often at great personal risk. “Several such tragic deaths have occurred, yet the government has shown no seriousness in framing a concrete policy to protect and employ our youth,” he said.
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