New Assam BJP Chief Tries to Curb Factionalism
Dilip Saikia’s tough stance was on display when he publicly reprimanded forest minister Jayanata Mallabaruah, a close aide of CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, in a widely circulated video
New Delhi: With the Assam Assembly elections due early next year, newly appointed state BJP president Dilip Saikia has launched a concerted effort to curb internal factionalism and strengthen party discipline.
Since assuming charge in January, the Darrang-Udalguri MP has personally met senior BJP stalwarts — including Narayan Chandra Borkotoky, Bijoya Chakravarty and Rajen Gohain — who raised concerns over being sidelined. Saikia is also holding regular cadre consultations to solicit organisational feedback ahead of both the Assembly polls and next month’s local-body elections, in which the BJP-led NDA has already secured 37 Zilla Parishad and 280 Anchalik Panchayat seats unopposed.
Saikia’s tough stance was on display when he publicly reprimanded forest minister Jayanata Mallabaruah, a close aide of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, in a widely circulated video. The swift corrective action reinforced Saikia’s message that “all leaders are equal before the party leadership.”
Last month, he similarly insisted that MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi issue a public apology in the Assembly after “shocking the public” with his conduct, despite Kurmi’s private apology on the floor.
