The saffron party won 58 seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Asom Jatiya Parishad each received one (AJP).
Digital Desk: The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance won a landslide victory in the 60-seat Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) elections on Sunday.
The saffron party won 58 seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Asom Jatiya Parishad each received one (AJP).
According to preliminary results released by the Assam State Election Commission, the BJP (52 wards) and its ally Asom Gana Parishad (six wards) won in 58 wards, including three previously elected unopposed by saffron party candidates.
Masuma Begum, an AAP candidate, won Ward 42, while AJP nominee Hukum Chand Ali defeated the BJP candidates in Ward 1.
On April 22, polling took place in 57 of Guwahati Municipal Corporation's 60 wards, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning the other three unopposed.
The Guwahati Municipal Corporation elections saw a turnout of 52.80%.
The Congress had the most wards to contest, with 54, followed by the ruling BJP with 50, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with 39, and the Assam Jatiya Parishad with 25.
According to its seat-sharing agreement with the BJP, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) contested seven wards.
With these results, the Congress can be seen grappling with plummeting popularity in Assam.
AAP's win in one seat seems to prove that the party is being ready to set foot into the politics of Assam. Asom Jatiya Parishad too is being able to grab some power in the municipality elections.
The BJP was not able to grab 100 percent seat in the Municipality Election of Guwahati although they are the present ruling party.
AAP’s Assam state coordinator and national council member Bhaben Chowdhury exuded confidence the party would do well and the party seemed to sow the seeds in the elections as can be seen from the results.
It can also be seen that AAP is having a gauging popularity as 159 aspirants had applied for tickets from the party.
Rajesh Sharma, AAP's national council member and leader in charge of its affairs in Assam, said the party ran in the municipal elections to establish itself in the state. "There is currently no opposition in Assam," Sharma said, adding that the Congress was in decline and the new regional parties did not have a strong base. According to him, the
Arvind Kejriwal-led party hopes to fill this void.
Analysts believe that, while the BJP has a clear advantage thanks to promises like round-the-clock piped water and a solution to the city's annual waterlogging woes, the AAP's governance track record in Delhi may endear it to some of the city's middle-class voters — a segment that accounts for a sizable share of voters in municipal elections.
Will AAP be able to sow it's seeds in the political arena of Assam is the question of the day? And how will the BJP still hold onto its power with a new party coming into forefront in the politics of Assam.
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