A day after he quit as primary member of All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), Phanidhar Talukdar, who represented Bhabanipur seat, resigned from the Assam assembly and joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday.
Talukdar was the only Hindu among AIUDF legislators, a party which enjoys support from the Bengali-speaking Muslim community of the state. With his resignation, AIUDF’s strength in the assembly also came down to 15 MLAs.
Following his resignation from assembly and a meeting with chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Talukdar joined the BJP at the party state office in presence of state unit president Bhabesh Kalita and other senior leaders.
“Bhabanipur is associated with Khargeswar Talukdar and AIUDF’s win from this seat for three successive polls upset Hindus of the constituency. There was also no development in the area for past many years,” Talukdar told mediapersons after submitting his resignation to Speaker Biswajit Daimary.
“I am attracted towards the good work being done by chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the ideology of BJP. Hence, I decided to join the party for the benefit of my constituency,” he added.
“Bhabanipur is a historic place as it is associated with Khargeswar Talukdar. It was painful that this seat was represented by AIUDF since 2011. I am happy that Phanidhar Talukdar quit the AIUDF and joined us,” CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Wednesday.
{{/usCountry}}“Bhabanipur is a historic place as it is associated with Khargeswar Talukdar. It was painful that this seat was represented by AIUDF since 2011. I am happy that Phanidhar Talukdar quit the AIUDF and joined us,” CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Wednesday.
{{/usCountry}}Khargeswar Talukdar, who died on December 10, 1979, was the first person killed in the six-year-long agitation against illegal immigrants. The agitation, that saw 855 deaths, ended with the signing of the Assam Accord in 1985.
“I am hopeful that Talukdar will get re-elected from the Bhabanipur seat on a BJP ticket during the bypolls. I appeal to all BJP cadres and our alliance partners Asom Gana Parishad and United People Party Liberal to ensure his victory,” he added.
Talukdar is the third newly elected MLA to resign from their parties after the assembly polls. Earlier, Congress MLAs Rupjyoti Kurmi of Mariani and Sushanta Borgohain of Thowra resigned from the party and also quit as members of the assembly.
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