Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has welcomed the draft plan
The draft proposal for delimitation of Assam's assembly and parliamentary constituencies has sparked a blame game between the Congress and the ruling BJP.
While Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi has alleged that his Lok Sabha seat has been "dismembered" for political motives a year before Lok Sabha polls, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has welcomed the Election Commission's draft proposal and accused some people of trying to cook up a communal issue.
In the draft proposal, the poll body has marginally increased the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The total numbers of assembly and parliamentary seats, however, remain the same. The boundaries of some seats have been redrawn and names of some seats changed.
The Kaliabor Lok Sabha seat, a Congress stronghold represented by Mr Gogoi since 2014, will now be called Kaziranga, after the wildlife sanctuary. As per the draft plan, this Lok Sabha seat will now comprise 10 assembly segments - Kaliabor, Barhampur, Binnakandi, Hojai, Lumding, Golaghat, Dergaon, Bokakhat, Khumtai and Sarupathar.
The Congress leader has now hit out at the draft plan, alleging a political motive. "Not surprised to find that the draft delimitation list released by the Election Commission has dismembered my Lok Sabha seat Kaliabor. The list has several errors and faults. With less than a year left for the polls the motive is plain. But nothing can stop the winds of change," he tweeted last night.
The state Congress has hit out at the Election Commission over the timing of the draft proposal.
State party chief Bhupen Kumar Borah said the Assam delimitation exercise has been challenged in Supreme Court.
"Therefore, while the matter is sub judice, it is astonishing--and a direct affront to the Hon'ble SC--that the ECI have come out with a draft Delimitation document without waiting for the SC judgement.
Doesn't this show that the ECI is acting like an extended arm of BJP?" he tweeted.
Chief Minister Sarma, however, has welcomed the draft plan. "Even my seat has gone, but I am not raising an issue. Some people are trying to turn this into a communal issue after their seat was changed or dissolved in this delimitation (draft)," he said today, in a veiled attack on the Congress criticism.
Soon after the draft proposal was out last evening, Mr Sarma had tweeted, "The draft delimitation published by ECI today stipulate that the current Jalukbari constituency, which I have represented since 2001, will no longer exist as it has been divided into three parts. I am feeling very saddened by this news. However, I welcome the draft paper as it accurately reflects the sentiments of Assam."
The draft plan, however, mentions Jalukbari seat and lists the wards under it.
The delimitation plan, Mr Sarma said, is going to protect Assam and people are very excited about it.
The Congress's problems are not the problems of Assam or of India, he said.
The draft plan has increased the seats reserved for tribal candidates from 16 to 19 - the three extra seats have been allocated to Bodoland region. The proposal also hikes the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes candidates by one, the hilly West Karbi Anglong district gaining the seat.
Hitting out at those opposing the draft proposals, Mr Sarma said, "I want to ask them, are the Bodos and Karbi people not indigenous? This is for the first time that some tribal communities of North Bank will get an opportunity to represent themselves."
The draft plan, he said, protects the rights of both tribals and non-tribals.