Himanta goes to file poll papers, crowd brings Guwahati to a halt

GUWAHATI: Traffic came to a halt in the city on the last day of filing of nominations with about 25,000 supporters of BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma took out a 4km rally on Friday, reports Mukut Das. Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh, BJP national general secretary Dilip Saikia and Union minister

Narendra Singh

Tomar accompanied him.


Sarma began his day by offering prayers at Doul Govinda Temple in north Guwahati and Kamakhya Temple. The rally, perhaps the largest so far in this election, began at 12.05pm from Sonaram Higher Secondary School playground at Bharalumukh and reached the Kamrup deputy commissioner’s office where he filed his nomination for the

Jalukbari

constituency at 2.30pm, as advised by his priest. Sarma has been winning non-stop from Jalukbari since 2001.

He was also accompanied by his mother Mrinalini Devi, wife Riniki Bhuyan and son Nandil. For the rally, 300 privately owned city buses were requisitioned, which affected commuters, mainly college students.

Traffic diversions were put in place on both Thursday and Friday because of the nominations. Students of Cotton University whose semester examinations are on, had to face difficulties. Even patients were affected as ambulances got stuck in the congestion caused by the BJP rally on Friday.

Sarma’s supporters went over two layers of barricades installed about 500 metres from the DC office and shouted slogans.

Some supporters later told TOI that Sarma was like a guardian to the constituency.