Assam Congress leader accuses AIUDF of colluding with BJP to divide Muslim votes

GUWAHATI: Veteran Assam Congress leader Rockybul Hussain, who is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from the Dhurbri seat, accused the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) of colluding with the BJP to divide Muslim votes in Assam.

Hussain alleged that despite claiming to champion the cause of Muslims, AIUDF has entered into an understanding with the BJP to support its candidates.

Releasing photographs of AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal and his brother MLA Sirajuddin Ajmal meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union home minister Amit Shah in New Delhi, Hussain criticized Ajmal for allegedly playing with the sentiments of Muslims in Assam.

He claimed that instead of opposing the saffron party, AIUDF has opted to facilitate the division of Muslim votes to benefit BJP candidates, particularly in the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat.

Hussain’s allegations come in the wake of Aminul Haque Laskar, the first Muslim MLA from the Assam BJP in 2016, recently joining the Congress party.

Laskar accused the BJP of abandoning its political ideology in Assam and forming an alliance with AIUDF.

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He emphasized that his departure from the BJP would dent its credibility among Muslims in Assam.

The AIUDF, founded by Badruddin Ajmal, emerged as the third-largest political party in Assam after the BJP and the Congress, securing 16 seats in the 2021 Assam assembly elections.

Ajmal currently represents the Dhubri constituency in Assam in the Lok Sabha.

Laskar, who also serves as the chairperson of the Assam State Commission for Minorities, cited the BJP's ideological shift in Assam as the reason for his resignation.

He joined the Congress party in the presence of the party's Assam in-charge, Jitendra Singh Alwar.

The seven-phase Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to commence on April 19, with Assam voting in three phases on April 19, April 26, and May 7, respectively.

The election results are expected to be announced on June 4.