GUWAHATI: With just three days remaining before votes are counted in the Assam Assembly elections, the BJP-led NDA may appear poised for another term if exit polls are to be believed—but beneath the surface, the ruling alliance is far from united.
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Behind the public display of confidence, the Assam BJP and its ally, the AGP, are battling intense internal discord marked by allegations of betrayal, rebel campaigns, and mounting resentment over candidate selection. In several constituencies, the fiercest contest is no longer against the Opposition but within the alliance itself.
The simmering tensions burst into the open when senior BJP leader and Cabinet Minister Ranjeet Kumar Dass, contesting from Bhabanipur-Sarbhog, publicly accused members of his own party of working against him. “In this election, I am not only fighting the CPI(M), but also ‘gaddars’ within my own ranks. I will expose them before May 4 and place all facts before the appropriate platform,” Dass wrote in a Facebook post, setting off a storm within political circles.
Dass’s remarks have resonated with several long-time BJP workers, many of whom feel that the party’s once cohesive grassroots structure is now deeply fragmented. The situation escalated to the point where Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia had to intervene, cautioning party leaders and workers against using terms like “gaddar” on social media.
“It has come to our notice that some members are using language that goes against the BJP’s values and culture. Social media should not become a platform for airing internal grievances. Such terminology has no place in our ideological framework,” Saikia said.
Despite the official warning, discontent continues to simmer. In multiple constituencies, party insiders privately admit that while some workers appeared to campaign actively, they may have quietly withheld support where factional rivalries ran deep.
The alliance’s internal fractures are especially evident in AGP-held seats. In Bongaigaon, senior AGP leader and MP Phani Bhushan Choudhury accused BJP workers of undermining AGP candidate Diptimayee Choudhury by backing Independent candidate Chakradhar Das. “It is deeply unfortunate that despite being alliance partners, some individuals behaved like sleeper cells. This is a betrayal of alliance dharma,” he said.
For AGP leaders, the episode has reignited a long-standing grievance—that the party transfers its votes more faithfully to the BJP than it receives in return.
The situation turned even more volatile in Kamalpur and Rangiya after a leaked audio clip, allegedly featuring BJP MLA Diganta Kalita, surfaced. In the recording, he reportedly accuses party colleagues of betrayal and even issues threats against those he believes sabotaged his campaign.
From Hajo and Dispur to Titabar and Goalpara East, similar accounts of resentment, rebellion, and internal sabotage have emerged. In Dispur, senior BJP leader Jayanta Kumar Das entered the fray as an Independent after rebelling against the party’s official candidate—a move that could split votes and benefit the Congress. In Hajo, grassroots BJP workers were reportedly disgruntled after the NDA fielded an AGP candidate instead of a BJP nominee, leading to visible unease during the campaign.
In Titabar, a BJP woman leader went so far as to publicly urge voters to support an Independent candidate over the party’s official nominee. Meanwhile, in Goalpara East, AGP candidate Abdul Rahim Zibran openly accused several BJP functionaries of backstabbing him during the election.
At the heart of this turmoil lies a deeper structural conflict within the Assam BJP—the growing divide between its traditional RSS-backed cadre and a newer generation of politicians, many of whom have joined from the Congress and other parties.
For many in the old guard, the resentment runs deep. They believe they built the organisation through years of grassroots work, only to see newcomers wield disproportionate influence in candidate selection and decision-making.
Political analyst Prasenjit Biswas noted that the scale and openness of the infighting mark a significant moment in Assam’s political landscape. “When senior BJP leaders are speaking more about internal sabotage than about their Opposition, it clearly indicates organisational stress. This election has exposed cracks that the Assam BJP had, until now, managed to keep under wraps,” he said.