GUWAHATI:
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has named its spokesperson and actor Pabitra Margherita for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats that will be vacant on April 2 while its ally, United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) has fielded Rwngwra Narzary to contest for the other.
The Congress, which has the support of the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), on the other hand, has renominated MP and former president of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) Ripun Bora for the second preference. The election to the two Rajya Sabha seats in Assam will be conducted on March 31. The seats will fall vacant after the tenures of Congress MPs Ripun Bora and Ranee Narah end on April 2.
“If I win, I will try to play an active part in parliament to highlight my party’s ideology, focus on the hopes and aspirations of my state and its people and since I belong to a cultural background, I will also raise issues related to Assam’s rich culture, diversity and history,” Margherita told the press. Margherita, who was the chairman of Jyoti Chitrabon Society during the tenure of Sarbananda Sonowal government, is now member secretary of the State-Level Advisory Committee for Student and Youth Welfare.
Narzary, who is the working president of UPPL and chairman of the Kajalgaon Municipal Board, tweeted on Saturday, “I am very grateful to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and my leader Rahul Gandhi for re-nominating me as the party’s candidate for the Rajya Sabha election from Assam. I am seeking blessings from all Congress leaders and party workers.”
While Margherita’s victory is almost certain, Narzary and Bora will have to battle it out for the second seat.
A party or alliance needs at least 43 votes to win one Rajya Sabha seat in Assam. The Congress and opposition parties have 43 votes while the BJP and its allies have 82 votes.
The state has a total of six Rajya Sabha seats. Besides the two held by Bora and Narah, three are with the BJP (Sarbananda Sonowal, Bhubaneswar Kalita and Kamakhya Prasad Tasa), one with the BJP’s ally Asom Gana Parishad (Birendra Prasad Baishya) and one with Anchalik Gana Morcha (Ajit Kumar Bhuyan).