This Assam village shuts door on politicians ahead of panchayat polls

In a stinging indictment of decades of political neglect, villagers of Amrit Gaon, under Kumchai Gaon Panchayat in Assam’s Margherita LAC (83), have erupted in protest, declaring that no representative of any political party will be allowed to set foot in their village ahead of the upcoming Panchayat elections.

Despite India celebrating 78 years of independence, the 300 Adivasi families of this village—home to over 900 voters—say they have been used merely as a vote bank by successive governments, from Congress and AGP to the current BJP regime. 

The promises of development, they claim, have remained empty slogans.

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"They come with folded hands and fake tears during elections, but forget us the moment they win. The road here looks the same as it did in 1942," said one villager, pointing to the crumbling path that barely qualifies as a road.

Despite repeated assurances by Margherita MLA Bhaskar Sharma and the BJP's loud claims of a Digital India, villagers allege that not a single house in Amrit Gaon has benefited from the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Women have been left out of the Arunodoi scheme, and the Jal Jeevan Mission, despite its multi-crore budget, has failed to provide drinking water.

The area also lacks irrigation for farming, leaving the agriculture-dependent community on the edge of survival.

“Where is the development?” asked a villager in anguish. “Whose development are they talking about? Where does all the Central Government’s money go?”

With panchayat elections looming, the villagers have sent a clear warning: no political leader will be welcomed unless development arrives first. The betrayal is too deep, and the patience of Amrit Gaon has finally run out.