Assam Delimitation: Releasing the draft delimitation document for Assam, the Election Commission has proposed to retain the number of assembly seats in the northeastern state at 126 and the number of Lok Sabha seats at 14. Now the opposition has become aggressive about this. The opposition has alleged that the Election Commission is working at the behest of BJP and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma. It has been said from the Congress side that the Election Commission has prepared the draft under the influence of power. After the allegations of the opposition, politics has intensified regarding this matter.
Congress raised questions on the Election Commission
Assam Pradesh Congress Committee President Bhupen Bora launched a scathing attack on the BJP over the delimitation proposal, and also questioned the decision of the Election Commission. Bora said, “It is very unfortunate that the Election Commission is working like an agency of the BJP. Election Commission is like a front agency for BJP. Despite you knowing that the matter is already in the Supreme Court and the court has fixed the date of hearing on 25th July, the proposal was given.
The Congress leader said that these people are trying to mislead the people of Assam. State Congress Committee President Bhupen Bora also questioned the statement of Assam CM Himanta Biswa, in which he said that the native people of Assam are safe.
CM Himanta Biswa welcomed
Amidst all the allegations of the opposition, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma welcomed this proposal of the Election Commission. CM Sarma said, “According to the new draft, my seat has also gone, but I did not raise any issue. Some people are trying to give it a communal color by changing or dissolving the seat in this delimitation. People will be protected. It covers all the areas from Upper Assam to Lower Assam. Tribal and non-tribals have also been given protection in the delimitation.”
What is the draft of the Election Commission
The Election Commission has proposed that the assembly seats reserved for Scheduled Castes be increased from eight to nine and that of Scheduled Tribes from 16 to 19. The Election Commission’s delimitation draft proposes to reserve 19 assembly and two parliamentary seats for Scheduled Tribes and nine and one parliamentary seat for Scheduled Castes. The election body proposed that the number of assembly seats be increased by one in the autonomous districts of West Karbi Anglong and three (16 to 19) in the Bodoland Autonomous Council areas.
The Election Commission has retained Diphu and Kokrajhar parliamentary seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes and has kept Lakhimpur parliamentary seat unreserved. As per the proposals, there will be one unreserved assembly seat in Dhemaji district. Two parliamentary seats have been proposed for the Barak Valley districts – Cachar, Hailakandi and Karimganj. The commission has proposed to name a parliamentary seat after Kaziranga.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajeev Kumar, Election Commissioners Anoop Chandra Pandey and Arun Goyal will visit Assam in July for a public hearing on the draft resolution. The delimitation exercise was done on the basis of 2001 census. The last delimitation was done in Assam in 1976.
