BJP’s Siddhartha bows out of Assam poll race gracefully, says no resentment over ticket denial

Guwahati: Former state BJP president Siddhartha Bhattacharya, who won the prestigious Gauhati East seat in the last two assembly elections, on Friday said he harbours no resentment over being denied a ticket this time.

He joined BJP in 1995.The party has fielded a young candidate, Diplu Ranjan Sarmah, a serving state general secretary, for the newly reconstituted New Guwahati constituency, formerly Gauhati East.Bhattacharya, an advocate and son of veteran Left leader Gauri Sankar Bhattacharya, expressed gratitude to voters of his home constituency for their support over the past decade.“My primary identity has always been that of an advocate, even though I was associated with the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch until 2011.

BJP first fielded me in Gauhati East in 2011 against Congress, where I lost narrowly. Despite the setback, I continued to work tirelessly. In 2016, the party entrusted me with a ticket again, and I won by over one lakh votes, becoming an MLA for the first time,” he said.He added, “In the 2021 elections, held amid the Covid-19 pandemic and the backdrop of statewide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, I retained the seat for a second consecutive term, winning by a huge margin.”

Bhattacharya, who represented the only urban constituency for a decade, said his work as MLA can be judged from the records of the state assembly. “I undertook several initiatives for the welfare of residents, particularly through the construction and reconstruction of key sub-arterial roads,” he said.On being denied a ticket this time, he said, “I harbour no resentment toward the party leadership. I have had the honour of serving this constituency for 10 years, and the people embraced me as one of their own.”Bhattacharya was defeated by Congress leader Robin Bordoloi, son of the first Assam CM Gopinath Bordoloi, in 2011 by nearly 4,000 votes. Bhattachary later defeated Robin Bordoloi’s daughter Ashima in 2021 and Bobbeeta Sharma in 2016.His father, Gauri Sankar Bhattacharya, represented Assam at the first CPI convention in 1943 and became the state’s first CPI MLA in 1957. He later quit the party and launched the People’s Democratic Party of Assam (PDPA) in 1969, the first regional party with a leftist orientation.