E-Paper
A week after poll results, Assam gets a new CM; Sarma pips Sonowal to top post
Sarma’s name for the post was proposed by Sonowal and seconded by BJP state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass. It was also supported by newly elected MLA from Halflong, Nandita Golosa.
Ending a week-long suspense and speculations, Himanta Biswa Sarma was named on Sunday as the next chief minister of Assam, pipping incumbent Sarbananda Sonowal to the top post.
The decision was taken at the first legislature party meeting of the 60 newly elected MLAs of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held at the state assembly after days of backroom lobbying in Guwahati and official meetings in Delhi following announcement of results of the assembly election on May 2.
Sarma’s name as BJP’s legislature party leader was announced by Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar who along with party’s national general secretary Arun Singh, were the central observers for the meeting.
Sarma’s name for the post was proposed by Sonowal and seconded by BJP state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass. It was also supported by newly elected MLA from Halflong, Nandita Golosa.
“I asked other MLAs if they had any other names in mind. No other name was suggested. Since the name of Sarma, a senior minister in our state government was the only one that was proposed, he is unanimously chosen as the legislature party leader,” Tomar told after the meeting.
On Saturday, two main claimants to the top post, Sonowal and senior minister Sarma were summoned by the party leadership to Delhi where they had several rounds of meetings with BJP national president JP Nadda and others. Both leaders returned to Guwahati late on Saturday night in the same flight.
BJP office bearers in the know of the developments said that the leadership decided in Sarma’s favour after the discussions. Sonowal, who was part of the first Narendra Modi government at the Centre, is likely to be accommodated in the Union cabinet again at a later date.
The formality of announcing Sarma (52) as the next CM took place in the presence of Tomar and Singh. Another national general secretary BL Santosh and party in-charge for Assam Baijayant Jay Panda were also present.
“With fragrance of Assam in my heart and and love of my wonderful people in my veins, I offer my deepest gratitude to you all. I would not been what I am had it not been for your pious faith in me. On this day, I vow to work with and for each one of you with greater passion,” Sarma tweeted.
In the BJP legislature party meeting, Sarma praised Sonowal for proposing his name for the CM post and thanked him for giving him several important responsibilities that allowed him (Sarma) to work for the people of Assam.
“I am confident Sarma will lead the state efficiently. I am also sure that with his long political expertise, in coming days he will be able to make Assam one of the leading states in India,” Sonowal said in the meeting.
Both Sarma and Sonowal later went together to Raj Bhawan where the former formally staked his claim to form the next government. The oath taking ceremony will be held at noon on Monday in which few ministers from allies Asom Gana Parishad and United Peoples’ Party Liberal are also expected to be sworn in.
“Many congratulations to Himanta Biswa Sarma on being elected as the next chief minister of Assam. Our only vision must be to work in tandem to make Assam one of the most developed states in India,” Assam Congress president Ripun Bora tweeted.
Earlier on Sunday morning, Sonowal went to Raj Bhawan where he submitted his resignation to Governor Jagdish Mukhi before proceeding with Sarma in the same vehicle to take part in the meeting of newly elected legislators.
Sunday’s development marks a major landmark in Sarma’s sharp rise within BJP, a party which he joined in 2015 after parting ways with then Congress chief minister Tarun Gogoi, in whose cabinet he was a minister for three consecutive terms since 2001.
Sarma played a crucial role in BJP forming its first government in Assam in 2016 and was allotted four important ministries--finance, health, education and public works department (PWD)-in the Sonowal cabinet.
As convenor of North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), the conglomeration of anti-Congress regional parties in northeast, Sarma was also responsible for BJP forming governments in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Tripura and becoming part of the ruling coalition in Nagaland and Meghalaya in the past few years.
Despite criticism from some, Sarma earned mass support with the way he handled the Covid19 crisis visiting patients in hospitals, overseeing setting up of Covid care centres and ensuring proper care for those infected.
He carried forward that goodwill during the assembly election campaign addressing rallies in all parts of the state and conducting road shows where thousands turned up to watch him.
Sarma also exercised lot of influence in the selection of candidates and actively campaigned for most ensuring another return to power for BJP. Sources say, he enjoys support of at least 40 of the new MLAs, a big reason which tilted the balance in his favour for the CM’s post.
“Sarma is the most aggressive voice of Hindutva in Assam politics. He helped in polarization of votes in this election by targeting Badruddin Ajmal’s party All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) and Congress for their poll tie-up. Sarma was also the one who conceptualized and implemented competitive populist schemes that helped BJP reach out to all sections of voters,” said Akhil Ranjan Dutta, professor of political science in Gauhati University.
“Sarma’s elevation to the CM’s post shows the BJP leadership is keeping an eye on the 2024 Lok Sabha poll. As convenor of NEDA, he would play a crucial role in BJP’s fortunes in Assam and all other states in northeast,” he added.
The delay in announcement of a CM’s name and formation of the next government despite a clear mandate at a time when the state is witnessing a rapid rise in new Covid19 cases and deaths had led to criticism of BJP by opposition parties and experts.
Assam assembly has a total of 126 seats. While BJP got 60 this time, same as its figure in 2016, its allies Asom Gana Parishad and United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) won 9 and 6 seats respectively taking the alliance’s total to 75 seats.
