Guwahati, Nov 9 (IANS): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has sharpened his political attack on the Congress, accusing the party of depending on minority votes and alleging that its political strategy revolves around electoral calculations rather than development.
Addressing a gathering during his visit to Lahowal in Dibrugarh on Monday, Sarma took a swipe at the Congress, claiming that the party was primarily concerned about securing votes from minority communities.
He also questioned the Congress's approach towards development in minority-dominated constituencies, alleging that the party had failed to adequately address the needs of these areas despite enjoying electoral support.
The remarks come against the backdrop of a significant political realignment in Assam, where the Congress has increasingly consolidated support among Muslim voters, particularly in constituencies dominated by minorities.
The 2026 Assembly election results reflected this trend. The Congress won 19 seats, with 18 of its elected legislators belonging to the Muslim community, according to an analysis.
The NDA, meanwhile, secured 102 of the Assembly's 126 seats. The BJP has repeatedly used the Congress's association with minority politics as a campaign issue, portraying the opposition party as dependent on a particular voter base.
The Congress, on the other hand, has maintained that it represents all communities and sections of society. The political contest over minority representation has deep roots in Assam.
The emergence of Badruddin Ajmal's AIUDF in 2005 challenged the Congress's traditional influence among Bengali-origin Muslim voters. The party rapidly expanded its electoral presence, winning 18 Assembly seats in 2011.
However, the political equation changed significantly after the Congress and AIUDF joined hands in the 2021 Assembly elections. The BJP used the alliance to question the Congress's political positioning among Assamese voters. The Congress subsequently ended its alliance with the AIUDF ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
In the 2024 Dhubri parliamentary contest, Congress candidate Rakibul Hussain defeated AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal by more than 10 lakh votes, marking a major setback for the latter's political influence.
The decline of the AIUDF continued in the 2026 Assembly elections, when the party was reduced to just two seats, while the Congress emerged as the principal opposition with 19 seats.
The political implications have become more complicated following the delimitation exercise of 2023, which reduced the number of constituencies where minority voters could decisively influence electoral outcomes.
Sarma's latest remarks indicate that the BJP intends to keep the Congress's minority politics at the centre of its political messaging. The Congress, meanwhile, faces the challenge of expanding its electoral appeal beyond its consolidated minority support base.
The debate is increasingly shaping Assam's political discourse, bringing questions of minority representation, identity, development and electoral polarisation into sharper focus.