The Hindu : AGP releases second list

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 23, 2004

National

National

AGP releases second list

By Our Special Correspondent

GUWAHATI, MARCH 22 . The Opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) today released its second list of candidates for Mangoldoi, Jorhat, Tezpur and Karimganj Lok Sabha constituencies.

In Mangoldoi, the party has fielded Apurba Kumar Bhattcharjee, former president of the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP). Mr. Bhattacharjee, who joined the party yesterday, will be pitted against the sitting Congress MP, Madhab Rajbangshi, and the Bharatiya Janata Party candidate, Narayan Chandra Barkotoki.

Releasing the list, Brindaban Goswami, party president, named Nepal Das as the AGP candidate from Karimganj constituency in Barak Valley. Mr. Das, the sitting MP, joined the AGP after resigning from the ruling Congress as he was denied a ticket this time.

The Congress has fielded Lalit Sulka Baidya while the BJP has named Parimal Sukla Baidya as its candidate.

In Jorhat constituency, the AGP has fielded former Minister Dulal Barua who had resigned from the BJP and joined the regional party along with Mr. Das last week.

The Congress has re-nominated its sitting MP, Bijoy Krishna Handique, while the BJP has named Dayananda Borgohain as its candidate.

In Tezpur constituency the party has fielded its treasurer Padma Hazarika against sitting Congress MP, Mani Kumar Subba, who has been re-nominated and G.L. Agarwalla of the BJP.

The AGP had earlier named its candidates for Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur, Dhubri and Kaliabor.

Of the remaining six seats — Guwahati, Kokrajhar, Nagaon, Barpeta, Silchar, Diphu, the party is most likely to nominate former Home Minister, Bhrigu Kumar Phukan, who had quit as president of the state unit of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Saturday and begun discussions with Mr. Goswami on the modalities of his return to the regional party from which he parted ways following sharp differences with its founder president, Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.

Although the BJP has nominated ballad singer Bhupen Hazarika from this constituency the Congress is yet to name its candidate from this prestigious seat.

Mr. Hazarika is scheduled to launch his campaign in the city tomorrow.

For the Kokrajhar and Diphu constituencies the AGP is still undecided if it would field its own candidate or support candidates of ethnic groups, he added.

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