Veteran tribal leader and Naoboisa MLA Bharat Narah resigned from the Congress on Monday. The reason? His wife and former Union minister three-time Lok Sabha and one-time Rajya Sabha MP Ranee Narah was denied a ticket for the Lakhimpur LS constituency in Assam. On Sunday, first Narah resigned from the chairman of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee’s media cell and on Monday morning, surprising all and following in the footsteps of other Congress leaders joining the ruling BJP, sent his resignation to AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge. Narah earlier elected five times as MLA from Dhakuakhana – from 1985 to 2011 – three times as a Congress candidate, once an Asom Gana Parishad candidate and once Independent.
Who is Bharat Narah
He was a cabinet minister under the Tarun Gogoi-led Congress governments in the northeastern state. Narah’s resignation comes after outgoing Barpeta MP Abdul Khaleque resigned after the denial of a ticket. Later, he withdrew his resignation after meeting party leaders KC Venugopal and Kharge in Delhi. Speculations are rife over the Narah couple's next move. Ranee Narah, former Union state minister in the UPA government elected from Lakhimpur thrice – in 1998, 1999 and 2009 – and has also served a term as a Rajya Sabha MP. The Congress announced Uday Sankar Hazarika as its Lakhimpur candidate, denying a ticket to Ranee Narah.
Hazarika joined the grand old party from the BJP in December last year. Hazarika also had earlier contested unsuccessfully. The Congress announced 12 candidates on March 12 keeping suspense over Lakhimpur till last Saturday. It is contesting in 13 of the 14 LS seats in Assam.
