Guwahati, 21 June: Hours after the Election Commission of India released the draught proposal for the delimitation process in Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reacted to the requirement that the current Jalukbari constituency which he had been representing since 2001 will be divided into three parts.
Chief minister Sarma expressed his sadness after hearing that the Jalukbari constituency which he has been representing since 2001 will no longer exist.
Taking to Twitter, he said, “The draft delimitation published by ECI today stipulate that the current Jalukbari constituency, which I have represented since 2001, will no longer exist as it has been divided into three parts. I am feeling very saddened by this news. However, I welcome the draft paper as it accurately reflects the sentiments of Assam.”
It should be noted that the ECI published its draught proposal for the delimitation of Assam’s Assembly and Parliamentary Constituencies earlier in the day. This represented a crucial milestone in the state’s political landscape’s reconfiguration. This revision has been a long-awaited development for Assam because the last delimitation exercise was in 1976, more than 40 years ago.
The number of Assembly seats will remain at 126, while the number of Lok Sabha seats would remain at 14, according to data from the 2001 Census.
The proposal’s main elements are the reservation of 19 Assembly seats and 2 Parliamentary seats for Scheduled Tribes (STs), enhancing their political representation. Additionally, 9 Assembly seats and 1 Parliamentary seat will be reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) aiming to empower these historically disadvantaged groups.