Assam election: NPP fields candidates in three constituencies for the April 9 election

A “friendly fight” with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) in Sibsagar constituency has diverted attention from the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) not-so-friendly contest with another NDA constituent — the National People’s Party (NPP).

The NPP has fielded candidates in three constituencies for the April 9 election, eight fewer than in 2021. They are sitting MLA Mohammed Aminul Islam from Mankachar, Ganseng B. Sangma from Boko-Chaygaon, and Daniel Langthasa from Haflong.

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Mr. Islam, who quit the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) before the polls, will face the AGP’s Jabed Islam in Mankachar, which borders Meghalaya and Bangladesh. The BJP’s Raju Mech and Rupali Langthasa are Mr. Sangma and Mr. Langthasa’s main rivals.

Mr. Langthasa was one of four northeastern leaders who had joined hands a year ago to work toward a “viable political alternative” in the region. The others are the NPP’s national president and Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma, Tripura’s Tipra Motha Party founder Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma, and former Nagaland BJP leader Mmhonlumo Kikon.

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Defending his party’s decision to contest the Assam polls, Mr. Sangma indicated that securing a foothold in Assam mattered more for his party than fielding too many candidates. “We identified select constituencies based on long-term connections with the locals. We want to expand to Assam, but our goal is not immediate electoral gains,” he said, insisting that the NPP’s “little foray” into Assam should be seen as part of a broader, long-term strategy.

The only national party to have emerged from the northeast, the NPP was founded by former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A. Sangma more than a decade ago. His son, Conrad Sangma, made the NPP a political force beyond Meghalaya, its backyard.

The NPP retained power in alliance with the BJP and others in Meghalaya in 2023 by winning 26 of the State’s 60 seats. It also won five Assembly seats each in Arunachal Pradesh (2024 polls), Manipur (2022), and Nagaland (2023).

“We hope to open our account in Assam this time,” the Chief Minister said.

Although a part of the National Democratic Alliance, the NPP has never had any pre-poll tie-up with its post-election partners.