Troubleshooter Himanta puts end to Shiladitya Dev resignation drama

HOJAI: Hours after Hojai MLA Shiladitya Dev said he is going to contest as an independent candidate, Northeast Democratic Alliance (NEDA) convenor Himanta Biswa Sarma yet again proved himself to be the ace troubleshooter of the BJP in this part of the country by putting an end to the three-day-long resignation drama of the former.

Taking Dev by his side, Sarma addressed a press conference here this afternoon to assert: “Shiladitya Dev was a BJP worker, he is a BJP worker and he will continue to be a BJP worker.”

“It has been observed there have been media reports over the past few days that Shiladitya Dev has resigned from the BJP … Please understand that Shiladitya Dev is not denied a ticket to contest the elections, but Ramkrishna Ghosh and Sibu Mishra have been given tickets.

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“Shiladitya Dev has been given a bigger role because of his long and invaluable contributions to the party. He will now be campaigning for the party candidates across the state as well as in Hojai. He’ll ensure a massive victory for the BJP in the Assam elections this time,” Sarma said.

BJP national general secretary Dilip Saikia, who also addressed the press conference, said: “Shiladitya Dev is a senior leader of the party and the BJP workers know the party’s ideology. It is time he takes more responsibilities in the party. As far as his future in the government is concerned, Dev along with other senior leaders of the party who are not contesting the elections will be appropriately accommodated in different responsible positions.”

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Dev had been maintaining that he would contest the polls as an independent because he could not afford to let the Congress win the seat without a fight as it would be a win for Badruddin Ajmal. He had said Ghosh was a tainted leader and was not fit to fight the Congress.

The candidature of Dev as an independent would have led to division of BJP votes in the constituency and the Congress would have had a roller coaster ride.