Rahul Gandhi has challenged Assam CM Himanta Sarma to jail him. Congress President Kharge has also shown tough posturing. This seems to be setting the political tone for the 2026 Assembly elections.
Assam Assembly Election 2026: Political activity has intensified in Assam regarding the upcoming Assembly elections next year. The old political rivalry between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has now come out in the open. By openly challenging each other to send the other to jail, both leaders have signaled that the Assam elections this time are going to revolve around highly aggressive and personal accusations.
A new political battle begins with the 'jail him' challenge
Before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, there was a clash between the police and Congress workers during Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' in Assam. After that, Chief Minister Himanta had talked about registering an FIR against Rahul and sending him to jail after the Lok Sabha elections. Now, a year and a half later, Rahul Gandhi has retaliated by saying that Himanta Biswa Sarma will be sent to jail when the Congress government is formed.
Rahul and Kharge visited Assam
Rahul Gandhi and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge recently visited Assam. During this time, they held meetings with Congress workers and prepared a roadmap for the upcoming assembly elections. In a public meeting held in Chhaygaon, Rahul Gandhi said that the Chief Minister considers himself a king, but he will soon be in jail. He called CM Himanta the most corrupt Chief Minister in the country.
Congress's election agenda: Attacking corruption and abuse of power
Rahul Gandhi and Kharge have both made it clear that Congress will give prominence to the issue of corruption in this election. Congress alleges that Himanta and his family are involved in corruption and are misusing the state's assets. Rahul said that the BJP government is handing over Assam's land and property to industrialists. At the same time, Kharge also alleged that democracy has weakened in the state and power is being misused.
Himanta's counterattack: Rahul himself is out on bail
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reacted sharply to Rahul Gandhi's statements. He said that Rahul Gandhi himself is on bail in the National Herald scam of more than Rs 5000 crore. He described Rahul as one of the most corrupt leaders in the country. This statement is a sign of further heating up the political atmosphere.
Congress's new mission under the leadership of Gaurav Gogoi
Congress has recently appointed Gaurav Gogoi as the state president. He has been constantly making serious allegations of corruption and land grabbing against Himanta Biswa Sarma and his wife. The visits of Rahul Gandhi and Kharge have also made it clear that Congress is now strategizing with full confidence to corner the biggest face of BJP in the elections.
Congress's strategy: Aggressive campaigning and worker empowerment
In the Chhaygaon meeting, Rahul Gandhi called the workers the backbone of the party and called them lions and lionesses. He also said that the Congress has prepared a new team and work has started on the ground. In this way, Rahul has tried to boost the morale of the workers, which had weakened due to being out of power in the past years.
Congress sees a possibility of comeback in Assam
According to senior journalists, BJP's grip in Assam is no longer as b as it was in the 2016 and 2021 elections. The hold of Badruddin Ajmal's party on Muslim votes has weakened and Congress can get the benefit of opposition unity. This is the reason why Congress is now doing direct and aggressive campaigning against Himanta.
Electoral impact of Rahul-Himanta's old political rivalry
After leaving Congress, Himanta Biswa Sarma has made personal attacks on Rahul Gandhi many times. He also kept saying that Rahul Gandhi was the reason why he was not made the Chief Minister in Congress. On the other hand, Rahul Gandhi now speaks openly against Himanta. Even during the 2024 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', Rahul had called him 'the most corrupt Chief Minister of the country' from every platform.
