Kokrajhar: Monday’s results of the Assam assembly elections delivered a “ruthless verdict” in favor of the Hagrama Mohilary-led BPF in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). After the final results, BPF and NDA made a near-total sweep of the 15 newly carved out assembly seats, following the 2023 delimitation. This was possible after Mohilary decided to partner with the BJP-led NDA again, thereby ensuring the wiping out of its rival United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL).Mohilary’s move proved that in Bodoland’s complex demographic layout, a precise alliance arithmetic dictates not only electoral survival but can erase opposition in its entirety.Notably, it was also the BJP which decided a pre-poll deal to re-embrace Mohilary and drop Pramod Boro’s UPPL that turned out to be a master-stroke and consolidated the NDA’s votes and got the mandate of the voters for the third consecutive time.The BJP-BPF deal to share the 15 BTR constituencies in the 11:4 ratio proved to be highly efficient, and the alliance achieved maximum impact without any internal vote fragmentation. While BJP registered a flawless strike rate, sweeping all four of its allocated seats, BPF capitalized on its deep-rooted regional networks to secure 10 of the 11 seats it contested.Conversely, the electoral narrative for UPPL was one of a complete structural collapse. Forced to go solo under the heavy pressure of an anti-incumbency factor, the party failed to secure a single seat out of the 18 it contested statewide. The latest ECI dashboard confirmed UPPL’s complete wipe-out, effectively erasing the party’s legislative footprint in the BTR.The political map across BTR’s five districts now reflects an undeniable NDA dominance. In Kokrajhar, political debutant Sewli Mohilary ousted sitting UPPL MLA Lawrence Islary by a huge margin of over 38,000 votes. BPF heavyweights like Charan Boro in Mazbat and Paniram Brahma in Sidli Chirang also crushed their rivals, while Sabharam Basumatary and Rupam Chandra Roy comfortably secured Gossaigaon and Baokhungri.BJP also maximized its regional quota with high-profile victories on its own. Outgoing assembly speaker Biswajit Daimary delivered a crushing blow to UPPL by defeating its chief, Pramod Boro, in Tamulpur. Further, BJP’s Arup Kumar Dey surged ahead in the final counting rounds to capture Bijni, shunting out UPPL in its entirety. The party also comfortably maintained its grip on Tangla and Goreswar.The solitary outlier in the entire 15-seat region was Parbatjhora, where Congress leveraged on minority demographic consolidation to defeat BPF by around 8,800 votes. However, using a “ruthless and pragmatic” alliance, the BJP-led NDA fortified Assam, while Mohilary resurrected his party and ensured that the ruling coalition’s grip on Assam’s power corridor remains unshaken.
