Guwahati: After BJP’s Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll victory, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma addressed his first public meeting at Samaguri and said NDA’s next target was to win all 126 seats in the 2031 assembly polls.Samaguri used to be considered a Congress stronghold within the Nagaon parliamentary constituency. Speaking to the media after the meeting, he said he had promised to visit the constituency after the bypoll and had fulfilled that commitment.“Today, on the occasion of Diwali and Kali Puja, I extend my greetings to the people of Assam. During the Nagaon election, I mentioned that I would visit the Samaguri constituency. Today, I came to Samaguri, met the people here, and had the opportunity to interact with them.”Sarma said newly elected Nagaon MP Devasish Sharma and the local MLA would work for Samaguri’s development, with the CM assuring them of his cooperation.“Development work will happen gradually. Everything will fall into place, one step at a time. The target is to win 126 in the next assembly polls,” Sarma said.BJP regained the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat after 12 years with about 50% of the vote, finishing ahead of the All India United Democratic Front and Congress.Former BJP leader Rajen Gohain held the seat for four consecutive terms from 1999 to 2014. Congress won it in 2019 and retained it in 2024, when Pradyut Bordoloi defeated BJP candidate Rupak Sarmah.Bordoloi later left Congress to join BJP and contested the assembly election from Dispur, leaving the Nagaon seat vacant and triggering the bypoll.After the victory, Sarma said its significance lay in the constituency’s substantial religious minority population.“Despite the presence of more than six lakh religious minority voters, the party thumped the victory in the by-poll and improved its traditional vote base while securing a significant share of votes from minority communities,” he had said.
