Himanta says Congress 'loses even on paper ballots' as BJP-led NDA wins 34 of 42 seats in Silchar civic poll

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday took a swipe at the Congress after the BJP-led NDA secured a decisive victory in the first Silchar Municipal Corporation election, saying the opposition party performs even worse when voting is conducted through ballot papers. "See, Congress loses even on paper ballots. In fact, Congress loses even more on paper ballots. That's why in EVMs, sometimes people go and press NOTA or get panicked seeing the machine and vote in the wrong place. But people are well-practiced in voting on paper ballots. So whenever voting happens on paper ballots, Congress loses even more," Sarma said in Guwahati, as reported by news agency IANS. The NDA won 34 of the 42 seats in the civic body, with the BJP taking 32 and its ally Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) winning two seats. Congress secured two seats, while Independents won six, officials said, according to news agency PTI. Polling took place on October 3 across 40 wards, with BJP candidates Bijendra Prasad Singh and Bhakti Sen Talukdar elected unopposed from wards 9 and 20, respectively. Ballot papers were used for the election, and counting began at 8 am. The BJP has sought recounting in wards 29 and 30. Ward 29 was won by an Independent candidate, while Congress emerged victorious in ward 30. Officials said a decision on the recounting demand is yet to be taken. As many as 133 candidates contested the election. The BJP fielded candidates in 38 wards and Congress in 38, while AGP contested four. There were also 52 Independents and one CPI(M) candidate in the fray. The Silchar Municipal Board was upgraded into a 42-ward municipal corporation in 2022 and became operational in June 2025. Silchar, the principal city of the Barak Valley, had remained without an elected civic body for six years. Road conditions, drainage problems, waterlogging, erratic electricity supply and irregular drinking water availability were among the major campaign issues. Sarma said the verdict reflected public confidence in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership and his vision of urban governance under Viksit Bharat. In a social media post, he wrote, "Another day, another win for @BJP4Assam! The people of Silchar have given us a thumping majority in the Silchar Municipal Corporation elections, held through BALLOT PAPER." Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia said the outcome showed Congress had failed to gain public support even in a ballot-paper election. "The Congress always complains about EVM tampering, but this election was held through ballot papers, and they are nowhere," he said, as per PTI. Saikia called the result a major victory for Modi and Sarma's development agenda and said it demonstrated people's trust in the two leaders. Celebrations were held at the state BJP headquarters in Guwahati, where Saikia and Sarma joined party workers.