‘Bhupen Hazarika Was Our Damaad’: PM Modi Talks About Special Connect With Assam As He Meets State MPs

Continuing with his meetings with Members of Parliament from different states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met MPs from Assam. Along with the Bharatiya Janata Party, MPs from ally parties – two from the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) and two from Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) — were also part of the meeting.

Modi is the only prime minister to have visited the north-eastern state more than five dozen times.

While talking about his association with the region and his special love for Assam, Modi spoke about the contribution of Bharat Ratna the late Bhupen Hazarika. “I have great respect and appreciation for Bhupen Hazarika ji. Even more because he is our damaad (son-in-law),” said the PM, leaving everybody with a smile, as Hazarika’s wife is from Gujarat.

The prime minister also advised the MPs to be active on social media and to focus on taking the message of the budget to the people of Assam. He also asked the MP to be connected on ground and interact with the people and get a real understanding of their condition.

At the meeting, the MPs thanked Modi for his focus on the development of the Northeast. The recent awarding of the Rs 27,000-crore semiconductor project to the state is a major push for development, they said. They also thanked the PM for the assistance during the recent flooding.

Assam, which is considered to be the gateway of the NorthEast, has seen a huge support from the BJP over the past decade. This saffron party is the only party in the region, apart from the Congress, to be able to form a government twice in a row.

Sarbananda Sonowal from the state is the cabinet minister in the Modi government. Pabitra Margarita, Minister of State, is also from the state.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) bettered its performance with 11 of the 14 seats in Assam in comparison to nine in 2019. Of the 11 seats, nine are from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and one from UPPL and AGP each.

Earlier, the prime minister has already met MPs from Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha, among others. In the last special session of Parliament, Modi had met MPs from alliance partners such as TDP, JDU and LJP Ram Vilas faction.