E-Paper
‘Gaurav Gogoi failed completely, should resign’: Akhil Gogoi slams Congress after Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll setback
Akhil Gogoi also blamed Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi for the party's poor performance and called for his immediate resignation.
Prefer HTon Google
The BJP won the Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election in Assam, with the Congress being pushed to the third place. The result has drawn sharp criticism from Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi, a former ally of the Congress, who called the defeat a “tragedy for Assam's anti-BJP forces”.
Akhil Gogoi also blamed Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi for the party's poor performance and called for his immediate resignation. His remarks come as the Congress struggles in a constituency where Muslims account for more than 55% of voters.
Akhil Gogoi questions Congress's performance in Nagaon
Reacting to the by-election results, Raijor Dal MLA Akhil Gogoi pointed to the sharp fall in the Congress's vote count. He noted that the constituency had previously been held by the Congress, but a candidate's move to the BJP led to the by-election.
“Regarding the by-election in Nagaon—it was originally a Congress seat, but the candidate switched to the BJP, which is why this by-election is taking place,” he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Akhil Gogoi said the Congress had won the seat by a margin of 2.5 lakh votes in the previous election but was now struggling to reach even two lakh votes.
“This is essentially a minority-dominated seat,” he said, adding that the Congress's minority vote share had fallen sharply.
“The most significant development this time is that the minority vote share for Congress has plummeted from 25% to just 5%. The BJP is poised to win this minority-dominated seat,” he said.
Calling the outcome a historic setback for the Congress, Akhil Gogoi said Gaurav Gogoi had failed in his role as state party president.
“This is a historic defeat for the Congress,” he said. “I believe the Congress President, Gaurav Gogoi, has failed completely. In my opinion, Gaurav Gogoi should resign from the post of State Congress President this very day.”
Amit Shah credits BJP leadership for bypoll victories
Union Home Minister Amit Shah welcomed the BJP-led NDA's performance in the by-elections in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry, as well as recent local body polls in Rajasthan and Tripura.
In a post shared on X, Shah said the results reflected continued public support for the BJP under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.
“The BJP, under the leadership of PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji, continues to win elections one after another despite the lies and disinformation campaigns run by Rahul Gandhi and the INDI Alliance,” Shah said.
He claimed that the results showed voters had rejected the opposition alliance.
“The NDA’s victories in the by-elections in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry, and the recently held local body polls in Rajasthan and Tripura, demonstrate that the people have completely rejected the INDI Alliance,” he said.
Shah also accused opposition parties of questioning institutions after electoral defeats, saying voters had recognised their “true character”.
