Rakibul Hussain, Congress MP, has criticised Pradyut Bordoloi following his decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party on March 18, saying the party had played a key role in shaping his political career and that his defection raises serious questions about loyalty and memory.
“Earlier, he did not have a strong base in Nagaon — we brought him in and helped him become an MP,” Hussain said.
Bordoloi joined the BJP in Delhi on Wednesday in the presence of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and state party president Dilip Saikia, a day after resigning from the Indian National Congress. His exit leaves the party with just two of its three sitting MPs from Assam.
Hussain described the development as personally disappointing, recalling that Bordoloi had earlier been one of the most vocal critics of Sarma within the Congress.
“His language was more forceful than mine,” Hussain said. “He used to criticise Himanta Biswa Sarma even more strongly than I did.”
Bordoloi had served as chairman of the Congress Manifesto Committee and had prepared a detailed chargesheet against the Assam government, which was later released publicly by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. The document targeted the ruling dispensation on issues such as corruption, unemployment, tribal dignity, and schemes including PM Sampada and Jal Jeevan Mission.
“That document was his own work and strongly targeted the government,” Hussain said. “But now, he appears to be siding with Himanta Biswa Sarma — which raises serious questions.”
Hussain also pointed to what he described as Bordoloi’s obligation to the party, noting that after losing the election in Margherita in Tinsukia district, he was given another opportunity at someone else’s expense. “This should not be forgotten.”
Priyanka Gandhi had earlier offered a more measured response to the defection, stating that Bordoloi had been unhappy with ticket distribution. “This was unfortunate,” she said.
Hussain, however, took a stronger stand. “Many deserving people did not receive tickets, but did they leave Congress? No,” he said, adding, “The Congress party nurtured and built all of us.”
Bordoloi’s departure marks the second major defection from Assam’s Congress within a month, following the recent exit of former state Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah to the BJP, raising concerns within the party ahead of the elections.
“Today, those who are leaving the party should remember that the positions they hold — MP, former minister, former MLA — were all given to them by Congress,” Hussain said.
