The Bharatiya Janata Party achieved a dominant victory in the Silchar Municipal Corporation elections in Assam, securing 32 wards, while the principal opposition Congress was reduced to just two seats. The civic body poll was conducted entirely through traditional paper ballots rather than electronic voting machines. Against the backdrop of demonstrations against SIR, the election results prompted Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to launch a sharp political critique regarding the performance of the opposition party.
Chief Minister Targets Opposition Over Paper Ballot Results
Reacting to the electoral outcome, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma pointed out that while Congress frequently questions electronic voting machines, voters rejected the party even when the election was conducted entirely through paper ballots. Sarma stated, 'Congress lost by an even bigger margin on ballot paper.' He remarked that with voting machines, some voters get intimidated and press NOTA or occasionally hit the wrong option, whereas citizens are thoroughly familiar with marking physical ballot papers. In his assessment, holding elections through physical paper ballots resulted in an even steeper decline for the party.
Performance Across Minority-Dominated Wards
Addressing the specific demographic layout of the civic body, Sarma noted that the Silchar municipal area included 10 wards with religious minority populations. These 10 seats were traditionally considered areas where Congress could have drawn decisive support from minority voters to secure victories. However, the ballots did not translate into votes for the party, leaving it with merely two total seats across the corporation. Independent candidates performed stronger by picking up five seats in those segments, pushing Congress down to the third position behind the ruling alliance and independents. Sarma added a political slogan on the occasion, declaring that the opposition is poised to lose on both machines and paper ballots.
Detailed Seat Distribution Across Silchar Wards
The municipal council comprises a total of 42 wards, with voting organized for 40 seats on October 3. Polling was not required in ward number 9 and ward number 20, where BJP candidates Bijendra Prasad Singh and Bhakti Sen Talukdar had already been elected uncontested. In the final seat tally across all 42 wards, the BJP won 32 seats, while the Asom Gana Parishad claimed 2 seats. In contrast, Congress secured only 2 wards, and independent candidates captured 6 seats across the municipality.
