The panel also intends to change the geographical borders of the majority of assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies, while removing some seats and adding a few new ones.
Digital Desk: The ruling alliance and opposition parties in Assam slammed the idea to realign constituencies on Wednesday, a day after the Election Commission published the draft delimitation plans for Assembly and Parliamentary seats.
Other than the opposition parties,
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed sadness over the trifurcation of his Jalukbari constituency, while the opposition lambasted the EC for acting as "an extended arm of the BJP" in a "conspiracy to safeguard" the saffron party's vote bank.
The poll panel notified the draft delimitation paper on Tuesday, keeping the number of assembly seats in Assam at 126 and the number of Lok Sabha constituencies at 14. The state also has seven Rajya Sabha seats.
According to the draft, the assembly seats reserved for Scheduled Castes are expanded to nine from eight, and those reserved for
Scheduled Tribes have been increased to 19 from 16. Two parliamentary constituencies have been planned for the ST community and one for the SC community.
The panel also intends to change the geographical borders of the majority of assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies, while removing some seats and adding a few new ones. According to ECI's draft delimitation, the current Jalukbari constituency, which I have represented since 2001, will no longer exist because it has been divided into three parts.
“I am feeling very saddened by this news. However, I welcome the draft paper as it accurately reflects the sentiments of Assam," Sarma said in a tweet.
He later told reporters that if the plans are implemented, Assam will be "politically saved," with indigenous tribes' interests protected in the future.
State Congress President Bhupen Kumar Borah, on the other hand, questioned the central election commission for publishing the draft so quickly while the case is still before the Supreme Court.
He tweeted, "Some eminent citizens moved the Hon'ble SC, and the SC have given 25th July'2023 as the date for final hearing. Therefore, while the matter is sub judice, it is astonishing -- and a direct affront to the Hon'ble SC -- that the ECI have come out with a draft Delimitation document without waiting for the SC judgement."
Borah stated that the state Congress never opposed the delimitation exercise in principle, but on January 1 of this year, it met with EC officials in Delhi and requested clarity on different issues.
"However, they neglected to respond... "Doesn't this demonstrate that the EC is acting as an extension of the BJP?" he said.
Prodip Hazarika of the ruling Asom Gana Parishad fiercely opposed the draft proposal, which would have destroyed his Upper Assam constituency of Amguri.
"Amguri has historical significance, and we cannot accept its complete deletion. This is completely unacceptable. "When the EC members visit Assam next month, we will protest this move," he said.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel, are scheduled to visit Assam in July for a public hearing on the draft proposal.
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