Lok Sabha Polls: Political parties navigate challenges in selecting candidates amid Assam's redrawn political landscape
delimitation exercise of last year, political parties put their best foot forward. Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal who is Rajya Sabha MP is fielded from Dibrugarh axing Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Labour Rameswar Teli.
Congress's Gaurav Gogoi is looking to shift his constituency to Nagaon. Gogoi' Lok sabha constituency Koliabor ceased to exist, and a new constituency was created Kaziranga.
The political landscape of Assam stands changed after almost 27 years as the Election commission of India has published the Delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies last year.
BJP in Assam is contesting 11 Lok Sabha seats and has left two seats for Asom Gana Parishad and one seat for United People's Party Liberal (UPPL). AGP will contest Dhubri and Barpeta seats. UUPL will put up a candidate in Kokrajhar.
Student leader turned politician Sonowal is currently a cabinet minister of the central government. During the 2014-2016 period, he was a minister of state in the first Narendra Modi government and held various ministries, before becoming the first chief minister of Assam from the party in 2016.
Sonowal was an MLA (2001) and Lok Sabha MP (2004) of the AGP. He left AGP and joined BJP in 2011. Sonowal has thrice won assembly polls, two-time Lok Sabha member and one-time Rajya Sabha member.
Teli who has twice wrested the Dibrugarh seat is denied the party ticket. He was first elected to Lok Sabha in 2014. He has also twice made it to the state assembly. Rajya Sabha Member Kamakhya
