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Guwahati, Oct 9 (IANS) In a major political development in Assam, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Union Minister Rajen Gohain on Thursday formally resigned from the party, expressing deep dissatisfaction over its current leadership and functioning in the state.
Gohain, a four-time Lok Sabha MP from Nagaon and former minister of state for railways in the first Modi government, tendered his resignation at the BJP’s state headquarters, Atal Bihari Vajpayee Bhawan in Guwahati.
Addressing reporters after submitting his resignation, Gohain said he had been “patient for a long time” but could no longer continue in the direction the BJP had taken in Assam. He said, “We did not join this party to please people. We came here to follow the ideals of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani. But the party has now passed into someone else’s hands.”
The veteran politician further said that “only a regional party can serve the true interests of Assam,” hinting that he may announce his next political move soon. “BPF chief Hagrama Mohilary has emerged as the center of regional politics in Assam. I will take a decision soon,” he said.
Launching a scathing attack on the current state leadership, Gohain accused the BJP of becoming the “enemy of the Assamese people”. He said, “I am not a self-sacrificing person, nor do I have the means to accumulate wealth like current state BJP president Dilip Saikia. The chief minister does not listen to anyone and does whatever he wants.”
Gohain, who joined the BJP in 1991, represented the erstwhile Nowgong (now Nagaon) constituency for four consecutive terms from 1999 to 2014. In 2023, he stepped down as chairman of the Assam Food and Civil Supplies Corporation in protest against the delimitation of the Nagaon constituency, warning that the new boundaries would make it “unwinnable” for the BJP.
His exit is one of the most significant defections in recent times for the party’s Assam unit, highlighting growing internal discontent and indicating a possible realignment ahead of the upcoming elections.
–IANS
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