"Was stripped and thrashed by UPPL supporters": BPF worker a day before polls

BHERGAON: With less than 24 hours left to go till the commencement of the election in the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), what appears to be election-related violence has once again come to the fore in the strife-torn region's Udalguri district. Nipu Boro, a BPF worker hailing from Tanki Basti from Bhergaon claimed that two drunken men who are reportedly supporters of the UPPL part. The assailants have been identified as Hari Boro and Bolen Moshahary. The duo has been booked.

"I was stripped naked and brutally assaulted simply because I am from the BPF party. They forbade me from campaigning for the BPF and demanded that I campaign for their party instead," the victim Nipu Boro told reporters.

This act has drawn heavy condemnation from another BPF worker, who have called on the supporters of other parties to maintain amity and brotherhood despite differences over politics.

ALSO READ: 1st Phase of BTC polls to be held tomorrow; Here’s all you need to know

The fervid electioneering for the 1st phase of the polls in the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) came to a halt yesterday, with 10 Constituencies in Udalguri and 11 in Baksa set to head to the polling booths tomorrow. The second phase of the polls will be held on December 10. The votes of both the 1st phase and the 2nd phase of polling will be counted on December 12.

The elections — that will see 3 prime contenders — the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL), and the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) go head to head, are being seen as a “semifinal” ahead of the all-important polls in the State of Assam to be held in the first quarter of 2021.

The polls in the BTC were delayed after the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. It was initially scheduled to be held on April 4.

Assam Governor Jagadish Mukhi assumed administrative control of the BTC after the expiry of its 5-year term on April 27, 2020.

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