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Assam: New saffron leader Rangja Basumatary breaks silence; here's what he said

Assam: New saffron leader Rangja Basumatary breaks silence; here's what he said

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TAMULPUR: The sudden departure of Rangja Basumatary, the Bodoland People's Front candidate from Tamulpur, has become one of the most sensational occurrences in Assam amid the ongoing polls in the Northeast Indian state.

After he went missing yesterday, Basumatary's former colleagues at the BPF alleged that he was lured away by a big fat paycheck by the ruling party.

Today, the leader surfaced in Tamulpur, where he was eventually inducted into the BJP by Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar.

Asked why he left the BPF after 17 long years, he said: "They are not following the rules and regulations. I did not like that and therefore I left."

The newly-saffronized leader also added that he only found out about the true nature of the BPF only after he was granted a ticket for the polls. "That is when I realized that I cannot continue with this party anymore," he said.

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Asked about allegations that he ditched the BPF after receiving financial offers from BJP, he said, "I had asked for assistance to contest the election as I would be able to do it alone. However, I did not get any assistance whatsoever. Time and again, I asked them to help me, but to no avail."

Opening up about his decision to join the BJP, the defected leader said that it was an "obvious choice" as it is a national party that is working for the "common interests of all."

As far as the ensuing Assembly election is concerned, Basumatary said, electors should vote for the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) candidate Leho Ram Bodo.

“Since I am no longer in the fray, the electorate should vote for the UPPL’s Leho Ram Bodo and hope he does good work for the Constituency.”

Basumatary remained untraceable yesterday morning, leading party workers to speculate that he could have been ‘hijacked’ by some other political party.

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Edited By: Rana Pratap Saikia
Published On: Apr 02, 2021