Assam MP Pradyut Bordoloi joins BJP; CM hints at recommending him for polls

New Delhi: Assam MP Pradyut Bordoloi joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday, a day after he left the Congress and was invited by BJP Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.Speaking after joining the BJP, Bordoloi said, “The Assam BJP will recommend to the central leadership that he should contest the assembly elections. There is no reason for anyone with self-respect to stay in the Congress party. Our aim is to bring more Congress leaders into the party. “Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi on Wednesday called his resignation “very unfortunate”. She said Bodoloi was upset over the ticket allocation for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections. She said the party wanted a chance to speak with him before he resigned.

“It’s very unfortunate. I think he was upset about a ticket allocation and we wish we had an opportunity to have a conversation about that,” she said.In his resignation letter to the AICC president, Bordoloi said that he had been facing internal problems within the party. His move came soon after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made an open invitation to him to join the BJP.Speaking to reporters after his resignation, Bordoloy said he was not satisfied with the decision but felt the step was necessary. He said he had been insulted by Congress insiders on several issues, especially in Assam, and claimed that the party leadership had not shown sympathy to him. Bordoloi’s exit comes about a month after former Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah also joined the BJP after a long tenure in the party.The development comes ahead of the Assam Assembly elections, which will be held in a single phase on April 9 for all 126 seats. Counting is scheduled for May 4.The election will be a contest between the BJP-led government, which is seeking a third consecutive term under Himanta Biswa Sarma, and the Congress, which is aiming to return to power.