Our Special Correspondent
TURA:
The Congress, which till the other day was the single largest party after the 2018 polls but ended up with a total wipe out after all its elected legislators joined other parties, is going to announce its list of candidates for the Assembly polls on January 24.
The party is only next to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in delaying the announcement of its candidates, while the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) was the first to do so followed by the National People’s Party (NPP), last week.
A multitude of candidates in several constituencies is said to have delayed the selection list.
The Congress is planning to field a mix bag of old and new candidates for the ensuing polls and these include a sitting legislator from one party and a couple of former ministers, informed party leaders.
Sayedullah Nongrum to contest from Mahendraganj
Former Congress legislator of Rajabala is being pitted as the party candidate against Trinamool’s Dikkanchi D Shira in Mahendraganj, party insiders have revealed.
Sayedullah Nongrum last won his MLA election from Rajabala in the year 2008 as a Congress candidate when he defeated Ashahel D Shira of the NCP.
He lost the subsequent elections from Rajabala (2013) and Tikrikilla (2018).
KC Boro to contest from Tikrikilla
Another former Congress MLA Kapin Ch Boro is being fielded to take on Trinamool leader and former Chief Minister Mukul Sangma from Tikrikilla in the coming elections.
KC Boro was, until recently, with the BJP before severing ties with the saffron party.
A former MLA, he has been out of power for well over two decades.
He last contacted the assembly elections from Tikrikilla, along with Sayedullah Nongrum, without success.
Lack of a serious candidate for Rajabala appears to be hampering the Congress which is toying with the idea of allocating the party ticket to Carla R Sangma, a greenhorn who contested the 2020 by-elections to Rajabala as an Independent but forfeited his security deposit after garnering a mere 253 votes to come in last place.