BJP Is Friends Again With Ex Ally In Assam Ahead Of Rajya Sabha Polls

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today said that the BJP has admitted Bodoland People's Front (BPF) as a partner of the party in the Legislative Assembly.

"From today, we have admitted the Bodoland People's Front as one of the partner parties of BJP within the Assam Legislative Assembly. We will have total floor coordination with BPF as well as they will be sitting in the ruling party's portion in the Assam assembly," Mr Sarma said.

But the Assam Chief Minister clarified that the alliance was not on a political level, and will be confined only to the assembly.

"This friendship will be confined to the assembly but at a political level, we have not taken any such decision. This decision has been taken only at the level of a legislature party," he said.

"BJP has not formed an alliance with BPF; the BJP Legislature Party and BPF Legislature Party will work together. On this, I have also taken consent from United People's Party Liberal (UPPL) and have discussed with them also. They have no objection to this new formation," the Chief Minister said.

BPF had formed an alliance with BJP in the 2016 assembly polls and was part of the Sarbananda Sonowal government. But in the 2020 Bodoland council elections, BJP allied with United People's Party Liberal (UPPL) and formed the government at the Bodoland Territorial Council.

The BPF severed ties with BJP in February last year, just before the assembly polls in Assam and joined the grand alliance led by Congress.

Later, BPF quit the Congress-led grand alliance too.

In the 2021 Assam assembly polls, the grand alliance of Congress, AIUDF, BPF, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) had won 50 seats.

Two Rajya seats will be vacant shortly and BJP and its allies are preparing to win both the seats.

Mr Sarma said that UPPL's consent was taken by BJP before this new arrangement with the BPF.