BPF not to be part of BJP-led NDA in Assam polls: Himanta

Assam Finance Minister HimantaBiswa Sarma on Sunday made it clear that the ruling BJP willnot have any alliance with its existing ally Bodoland PeoplesFront BPF in the upcoming Assembly polls in the state.In the Bodoland Territorial Region BTR, the BJP hasalready formed an alliance with the United Peoples PartyLiberal UPPL and is currently holding talks with anotheroutfit Gana Suraksha Party GSP regarding seat sharingarrangements, Sarma said.We have been telling it many times that our alliancewith BPF was for five years only and both sides were committedto it.

Assam Finance Minister HimantaBiswa Sarma on Sunday made it clear that the ruling BJP willnot have any alliance with its existing ally Bodoland People'sFront (BPF) in the upcoming Assembly polls in the state.

In the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), the BJP hasalready formed an alliance with the United People's PartyLiberal (UPPL) and is currently holding talks with anotheroutfit Gana Suraksha Party (GSP) regarding seat sharingarrangements, Sarma said.

''We have been telling it many times that our alliancewith BPF was for five years only and both sides were committedto it. They are still in our government and it is healthypolitics,'' the BJP leader said.

In the BTR, the BJP will have a seat sharing agreementwith the UPPL and Lok Sabha MP Naba Sarania-led GSP, Sarma,who is also Convenor of North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA),the NDA version in the north-east, said.

Formed in 2005, BPF is a state political party in Assamwith its headquarters in Kokrajhar.

''We have already started negotiations with Sarania and itis moving in the positive direction. We will announce ourcandidates within 48 hours of announcing poll dates,'' headded.

BPF's relation with BJP went sour during the latestelections of the 40-member Bodoland Territorial Council, wherethe saffron party dumped its state ally BPF and formed thecouncil government in alliance with UPPL and GSP.

The BJP is currently the single largest party in the126-member Assam house with 60 MLAs, while its allies AsomGana Parishad (AGP) and BPF now have 13 and 11 lawmakersrespectively. The ruling coalition also has the support of anIndependent MLA.

The new regional party Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), whichhas formed an alliance with another fresh political outfitRaijor Dal, has recently said that it is talking to the BPFand ''it is moving in the positive direction''.

The elections to the Assam Assembly are likely in March-April. The 2016 elections gave a fractured mandate and noparty got an absolute majority in the current assembly.

The opposition Congress has 19 MLAs at present, while theAll India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) has 14 members inthe house in Assam.