Guwahati: The BJP-led NDA’s sweeping victory in the Assam Assembly election—winning 102 of the state’s 126 seats—has been widely linked to the constituency delimitation carried out in 2023, according to political observers.
Polling was held on the 9th, and results were declared after vote counting concluded. The NDA returned to power for a third term, with the BJP winning 82 seats and its allies—the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) and the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP)—winning 10 seats each.
In previous elections, the minority vote bank had played a major role in the success of the Congress and the AIUDF. However, based on the 2011 Census, the 2023 redrawing is said to have reduced minority-dominated influence from 35 constituencies to 25, contributing to setbacks for Congress and AIUDF even in areas they considered strongholds.
While the overall number of constituencies did not increase, seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes rose from 16 to 19, and Scheduled Caste reserved seats increased by one to nine. Notably, Barpeta and Goalpara West—areas with a large Bengali-speaking Muslim population—were reserved for ST/SC categories, and the BJP has now won both seats that had earlier been with Congress.
In the Bodoland region, reserved constituencies increased from 11 to 15, and the BPF secured 10 seats. The AIUDF, which had won up to 16 seats in earlier elections, won only two this time—both within the 25 constituencies where minority influence remains concentrated. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had earlier said delimitation would help the BJP win more seats, a claim that the final tally appears to support.
