LS polls: AIUDF has already won three times and is set to win again, says party chief Badruddin Ajmal
May 09, 2024
Dhubri (Assam) [India], May 9 : Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) supremo and three-time Member of Parliament from Assam's Dhubri Lok Sabha seat, has expressed confidence in winning his fourth consecutive term.
"Our party has already won three times and is set to win again. We are just waiting for the results, which will be announced on June 4 between 11 and 12 o'clock. That will confirm that the AIUDF has won for the fourth time," Ajmal said.
Ajmal's confidence is reflected in his reaction to a statement made by Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President Bhupen Kumar Borah, who had previously said he would resign if the Congress candidate for the Dhubri Lok Sabha seat, Rakibul Hussain, lost the election. Ajmal boldly challenged Borah to prepare his resignation letter, emphasizing the anticipated defeat of the Congress candidate.
"Bhupen Bora is going to lose, so tell him to keep his resignation ready and that he should submit his resignation by noon on the 4th," said Ajmal.
Earlier during the election campaign, Borah had declared that if Hussain lost the Dhubri seat, he would step down from his position as APCC president. The stakes are high for both parties as they await the results of the Lok Sabha elections.
In response to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad Yadav's recent comments on the need for reservation for Muslims, Ajmal supported his stand.
"For the last fifty years, our big leaders have been saying this. Other secular parties promised to, but nothing was done. We stand with Lalu Prasad Yadav," Ajmal said.
Former Bihar Chief Minister and RJD Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Tuesday came out in support of the Muslim quota, saying that they should get the reservation.
Speaking to ANI, the former CM said, "Muslims should get reservation (reservation toh milna chahiye Musalmano ko, pura'...)."
Lalu's statement came after Home Minister Amit Shah, addressing a rally in Bihar's Ujiyarpur on Monday, alleged that the Congress gave reservation to Muslims by reducing the quota for SCs, STs and OBCs in Karnataka and Andhra.
Dhubri Lok Sabha constituency, which went to polls on May 7, has been held by Ajmal since 2009.
In the constituency, where Muslims comprise 55pc of the population, Badruddin Ajmal was pitted against Congress's Rakibul Hussain, who is currently Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Assembly, and AGP's Zabed Islam who contested from the constituency in the 2019 election also but came third.
Before 2009 when Badruddin Ajmal first contested from Dhubri, the constituency was a Congress stronghold.
The Dhubri Lok Sabha constituency comprises Assembly segments of Mankachar, Salmara South, Dhubri, Gauripur, Golakganj, Bilasipara West, Bilasipara East, Goalpara East, Goalpara West, and Jaleswar. During the campaigns, Ajmal mainly trained his gun on his Congress opponent Rakibul Hassan.
When Ajmal first contested in 2009 he won the constituency with 51.7 per cent of the vote share. In 2014 it was 43.3 per cent and in 2019 42.7 per cent.
In the 2019 election, Ajmal bagged 718,764 votes, Congress's Abu Taher Bepari 492,506 votes and AGP's Zabed Islam 399,733 votes.