Assam polls: Congress leans on Priyanka, DK Shivakumar to counter BJP's 'infiltrator' narrative

Guwahati: With Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma strongly pushing BJP's "indigenous vs infiltrators" narrative to retain power for the third straight term, the Opposition Congress is banking mainly on Priyanka Gandhi and Karnataka deputy CM DK Shivakumar to aid its state leader Gaurav Gogoi as counter strategists.

Priyanka is for the first time heading the party's candidate screening committee while Shivakumar has been appointed as one of the senior central observers. Former Chattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel and former Jharkhand MLA, Bandhu Tirkey are the two other observers.

Sources within Congress said while Priyanka, during campaigns and candidate selections, would try to reach out to all communities to push Gaurav Gogoi's slogan of "restoring Bor Axom," (secular greater Assam), Shivakumar and other central leadership would assist in implementation of the counter strategies. "Shivakumar and Tirkey fought and won against almost similar communal narrative of BJP in Karnataka and Jharkhand elections. Their experience will prove handy for us here," a Congress leader in Assam, told DH.

Tirkey, an Adivasi leader, will reach out to the Adivasi voters living in Assam's tea gardens and also highlight how Himanta's campaigns around locals Vs Bangladesh migrants narrative during Jharkhand Assembly polls in 2024 failed to stop Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Congress combine from retaining power. "Although, we lost the elections in Chattisgarh in 2023, Baghel has experience of fighting against BJP. Baghel has experience as a poll strategist in Assam too."

"There is a strong anti-incumbancy against BJP in Assam. Realising this CM Himanta is making divisive statements," Shivakumar told reporters while exuding confidence about Congress's victory in Assam.

Fight of narratives:

On Thursday morning (February 19), Priyanka and Shivakumar began their Assam mission with a visit to ancient Kamakhya temple in Guwahati. Hours later, Priyanka released a 20-point "People's Chargesheet" here, targeting Himanta and BJP. The "chargesheets" accused Himanta of institutionalising "syndicate Raj," massive corruption and accumulation of illegal wealth in the name of his family. It also accused Himanta and BJP of failing to fulfill the pre-poll promise of according Scheduled Tribe status to six more ethnic communities.

Before this, Congress workers welcomed Priyanka to Rajiv Bhavan, the party's state headquarters, with gayan bayan, the traditional dance and music of the Vaishnavite culture. This, according to party workers, although is a tradition, was also part of strategy to counter Himanta's narrative that Congress was a party for the Miyas, a term derogatorilly used to refer to the Bengali-speaking Muslims. BJP calls the Bengali-speaking Muslims as infiltrators. Himanta and BJP is constantly targetting the Bengali-speaking Muslims while projecting the saffron party as the "saviour" of the culture and identity of the indigenous communities.

BJP president Nitin Nabin along with Union Minister and former Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday visited a tea estate in Dibrugarh in eastern Assam, a symbol of Assam's culture. Nabin, Sonowal and BJP's state unit president, Dilip Saikia, plucked tea leaves while a troupe of Adivasi communities performed jhumur (Adivasi dance) and welcomed them to a meeting nearby where he addressed BJP's booth level workers. "Under Himanta's leadership, BJP has secured Assam and worked for development. Make sure that BJP is again blessed by the voters," Nabin told the booth level workers.

Elections for the 126 member Assam Assembly is likely to be conducted in April.