Guwahati: All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief Badruddin Ajmal on Thursday admitted his support for the Congress by “leaving out” 11 seats for it in Assam.
Denying reports of lending external support to the BJP, Ajmal said his party is helping Congress to fight the saffron party, which is their “No. 1 enemy”.
“Maybe we are indirectly helping the Congress to fight against the BJP. We are a small party. We have left 11 seats for the Congress, but they are fighting against us in three seats,” Ajmal told News18. “Even after this, if they can’t win or if anyone says we are helping the BJP, I have nothing to say.”
“Ajmal is doing his own politics, nothing else,” said the perfume baron and two-time Lok Sabha MP from Dhubri.
This is for the first time that the AIUDF chief has admitted helping the Congress. But he lamented the fact that the grand old party had “betrayed” his outfit on the prospects of alliance even after “a gentleman’s agreement”.
“We are fighting against the Congress because they are fighting against us. We want to finish the BJP, but the Congress wants to finish us,” he said. “There was a strong agreement, a gentleman’s agreement involving four to five senior Congress leaders on an alliance with the AIUDF. And suddenly, they backtracked. The Congress doesn’t want regional parties on board.”
Ajmal expressed apprehension over a division of anti-BJP cotes in Karimganj, Barpeta and Dhubri Lok Sabha constituencies where the Congress has also fielded candidates. But the AIUDF chief said he was hopeful his party would retain the three seats.
In the 2014 elections, AIUDF candidate Radheshyam Biswas won from Karimganj (SC-Reserved) that used to be a Congress stronghold. Barpeta and Dhubri go to polls on April 23, the third and final phase of elections in the state.
In Kokrajhar, Ajmal has lent support to the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) candidate UG Brahma who will contest against the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) candidate Pramila Rani Brahma.
The BJP, which is in an alliance with the BPF and the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) in the state, hopes to win at least 12 of the 14 Lok Sabha seats.
Comments
0 comment