Himanta Biswa Sarma sworn in as Assam CM

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 10

Himanta Biswa Sarma was on Monday sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Assam by Governor Jagdish Mukhi in the presence of BJP president J P Nadda and other leaders of the state.

The oath of office was administered to 13 MLAs belonging to the BJP and its alliance partners, the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the United People Party Liberal (UPPL).

They include the state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass, Chandra Mohan Patowary, Parimal Suklabaidya, Ronoj Pegu, Sanjay Kishan, Jogen Mohan, Ajanta Neog, Ashok Singhal, Pijush Hazarika, Bimal Bora (all from the BJP) Atul Bora and Keshav Mahanta from the AGP and Urkhao Gwra Brahma of the UPPL.

Outgoing CM Sarbananda Sonowal, who had proposed the name of Sarma at the legislature party meeting yesterday, was not among them.

By choosing Sarma the BJP may have avoided a possible rebellion at a time when it failed to win neigbouring West Bengal and the Narendra Modi government is on a backfoot over its handling of the second wave of Covid-19 in the country, the question over the road ahead for Sonowal, a popular tribal leader in his own right, remains.

The leadership may have rewarded Sarma by giving him preference, it remains to be seen how it placates Sonowal—the face of the party in the last Assembly elections.

Tribals have a significant presence in upper Assam districts of Jorhat, Golaghat, Sivsagar, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Dhemaji and Lakhimpur. Observers say Sonowal and other tribal leaders gave the BJP a foothold in the region. Perceived largely as a ‘north Indian’ party, the BJP was able to garner the support of tribals, including the Kachari tribe to which Sonowal belongs.

Over the past years, he has been able to successfully blend the ethnic tribal pride with BJP’s Hindutva character. There was no major anti-incumbency against him, rather he enjoyed a popular, clean image. Therefore, though he may have handed over the baton to Sarma “willingly”, sources say Sonowal is not exactly over the moon and is now expecting a “meaningful role in the State, not Centre”.

Speculations are that given the BJP’s “one man, one post-policy”, he may be handed over the reins of NEDA. New CM Sarma is also the convenor of the all-important North East Democratic Front (NEDA).

Keeping Assam’s sizable tribal population by his side may be one of the biggest challenges of the new CM. Observers believe that apart from the raging Covid pandemic, a possibly unhappy former CM, and his supporters may be Sarma’s other big challenges in the State.

“Tribals may be unhappy with the exit of Sonowal. Sarma will also have to take care of tea garden workers, tackle unrest related to CAA and chart out the next step related to the NRC,” they say.