BJP gearing up for Assam polls with development agenda, CM candidate and vision document

GUWAHATI: Learning from the electoral debacle of Bihar, BJP in Assam is readying to approach voters with positive agenda of development. The party has started the dialogue process for preparation of a vision document “Assam Nirman”.

Discarding the practice of not projecting chief ministerial candidates, the parliamentary board of Saffron party has projected Sarbananda Sonowal as it chief ministerial candidate to take on octogenarian chief minister Tarun Gogoi.

In November last year Union minister of state for sports, Sarbananda Sonowal was assigned the role of state unit president and chairman of election management committee. Sonowal after taking over started the process of drafting vision document (2016-2021).

Former leader of All Assm Students Union ( AASU) Sonowal quitted regional party, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) to join the Saffron party in 2011. He won from Lakhimpur Lok sabha seat.

Sonowal political career soared after Supreme Court scarped Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, 1983 (IMDT) where Sonowal was the petitioner. This earned him the name of “Jati Nayak’ Hero of Race and under his leadership BJP in Assam won 7 seats in last Lok Sabha polls.

On 31 January Sonowal is returning to Assam from New Delhi. BJP workers have planned massive reception for the chief ministerial candidate.

BJP spokesperson Shiladitya Dev told ET, “We are going to polls with developmental agenda and transparency. We are clearly presenting before the voters our chief ministerial candidate and giving the people a roadmap of development in the form of Assam Nirman. In the entire vision document process people are involved. ”

The Saffron party has engaged Rajat Sethi, a public policy graduate from Harvard University to assist the state unit in preparation of a vision document. Engagement between BJP and civil society will be facilitated by a strong team of Harvard, MIT, IIT and IIM graduates from across the India. This team is headed by Rajath Sethi and Shubhrastha who was integral part of Prime minister, Narendra Modi’s 2014 election campaign.

On Friday Union minister of state for ministry of Commerce and Industry, Nirmala Sitharaman attended the Inaugural Dialogue on Economic Development and Infrastructure in Guwahati.

This vision document which is expected to be completed by February will replace the manifesto.