Barak Valley known as the Congress citadel since 1952 worked its way to the political map of the country in 1991 general elections when the BJP swept the polls on the crest of Hindutva wave winning both the Lok Sabha and nine of the 15 Assembly seats. BJP run-up to the countrywide rath yatra euphoria had set its agenda in motion: consolidating Hindus. It did work as the polarization was distinct. Quite amazingly, the party upset the Congress even in the three Muslim-dominated Assembly constituencies of Sonai, Karimganj south and Karimganj north.   But the polls of 1996 saw the downfall of the party which lost both the MP seats and had to be content with four Assembly seats. In the parliamentary election of 1998, it could regain the Silchar seat only to lose it in 1999.

There was nothing to cheer about for the party in the Assembly polls of 2001. Its alliance with AGP did not help. It could bag four seats only. The party, however, won equal number of seats in the Brahmaputra valley also.

In 2002 Ratabari by-elections   in Karimganj, BJP lost to Congress by a huge margin of more than 31,000 votes exposing the ills besetting the party. Though the leaders took the escape route to blame the rivals and the administration for the debacle, the rank and file could not swallow their logic line, hook and sinker.

Organizational weakness was brazenly explicit. There was  nothing like cohesion among the leaders and the workers. Internecine bickering and squabbling within the leadership told upon the direction and   purpose for a unified approach. If leaders look alienated, the workers confused and indifferent. But, it  was this Ratabari Assembly constituency which had heralded BJP’s victory march in Assam, nay in the North-East.

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