Assam lawmaker Pabindra Deka resigns from assembly

The senior politician had resigned from the AGP on December 15 and joined the AJP the next day

MLA Pabindra Deka, who recently quit the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and joined the newly-floated Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), on Monday resigned from the state legislative assembly.

Deka told PTI inside the assembly complex that he resigned from the House because he did not want anyone to make an issue out of this.

The three-day winter session began on Monday and 11 bills were tabled on the first day.

Deka has represented the Patacharkuchi constituency thrice -- 1985, 2001 and 2016. He is one of the founding members of AGP and served as a cabinet minister during 1985- 1990 in the first AGP government, led by Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.

The senior politician had resigned from the party on December 15 and joined the AJP the next day. On December 17, he was elected as the working president of the AJP.

With his resignation, the number of AGP members in the House has come down to 11.

Speaker Hitendra Nath Goswami said Congress MLA Ajanta Neog had resigned from the assembly on December 25 and it was accepted on the same day.

Neog, who was also expelled from the party, had met Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his recent two-day visit to the state.

A powerful Congress leader of Upper Assam, Neog later told reporters that she would join the BJP soon.

Neog, who represented the Golaghat constituency, was a close confidante of former chief minister Tarun Gogoi and a part of his cabinet in all the three terms since 2001.

In the 126-member Assam Assembly, the Congress now has 21 members.