Raijor Dal president Akhil Gogoi expressed confidence on May 2 that the Congress-led alliance would win at least 70 seats in Assam’s 126-member assembly and form the government, predicting that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would be voted out of power.
“We will win the polls. We are fully prepared. We will win at least 70 seats,” Gogoi told ANI.
The Congress has formed a six-party alliance including Raijor Dal to challenge the ruling BJP-led NDA in Assam. Exit polls, however, have projected that the NDA will retain the state.
Congress candidate from Dispur Assembly constituency, Meera Borathakur Goswami, expressed distrust in the exit polls and urged party workers to closely monitor the counting process. “We have never seen exit polls turn out to be correct. All our candidates and counting agents must keep an eye on their respective EVMs. We need to focus on the counting,” she said.
She added, “I believe that this time the people have given a mandate against the BJP, and for sure Gaurav Gogoi will become the Chief Minister, and Dispur’s mandate will also come in favor of Congress.”
Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi sharply criticized the BJP for alleged electoral malpractices and questioned the Election Commission’s role. “Here in Assam, we are witnessing this across various polling booths: BJP workers are present not only inside the strong rooms but were also present earlier while the voting was still underway. The crucial question is: what exactly is the Election Commission doing? This poses a grave threat to democracy,” he said.
“We, the opposition parties, are repeatedly raising this issue. And it is clear that the BJP cannot win the elections on the basis of its work. They want to save themselves through theft,” he added.
Exit polls forecast that the BJP-led NDA is poised to retain power in Assam for a third successive term. Axis My India projected the NDA would secure between 88 and 100 seats, with the Congress alliance winning 24 to 36 seats. JVC predicted 88 to 101 seats for the NDA and 23 to 33 for the Congress alliance, allocating zero to two seats to AIUDF and three to others. Matriz forecasted 85 to 95 seats for the BJP-led alliance, 25 to 32 for the Congress alliance, and 6 to 12 for others.
Vote counting is scheduled for May 4.
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