IN the political landscape of Assam, Sorbhog Assembly Constituency occupies a special place. This is the only Assembly seat in Assam which enjoys the distinction  of  electing   CPI (M) candidates  as many as five times. In 1978, party won the seat for the first time when party leader Hemen Das was elected with a huge majority. Later, the party retained the seat in 1983 amidst the violence of Assam Movement. In 1985, Assembly elections were held in Assam after the signing of Assam accord which resulted in the emergence of two rival political parties-      AGP  ( Asom Gana Parishad) on the one hand and UMF( United Minorities Front) on the other. Despite the polarization of votes between these two parties throughout the state, the CPI (M) candidate Hemen Das won the Sorbhog seat for the third time in a row. However, the party candidate suffered defeat in 1991 in the hands of a Congress candidate. In 1996, party candidate Hemen Das emerged victorious for the fourth time in a multi-cornered contest in which all other candidates lost their security deposits. In 2001, the party candidate could not retain the seat due to polarization of votes along communal lines. However, in 2006, CPI(M) fielded former MP and senior party leader Uddhab Barman as its candidate and regained the seat by defeating the nearest rival and Congress candidate Samsul Haq with a handsome margin. The BJP candidate came a poor third and lost the security deposit despite star campaigning by then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi and Smriti Irani. In 2011, the political scenario in Sorbhog witnessed a dramatic change due to various factors. One  such factor was the rise of AIUDF in entire lower Assam including  Barpeta district. This party, led by Badruddin Ajmal, is generally perceived as a Muslim-centric party by the wide section of the society. As a result, the rise of AIUDF helped in the communal polarization of votes in Sorbhog assembly seat as well. The BJP candidate Ranjit Das reaped benefits out of this polarized situation and came victorious in a multi-cornered contest. The CPI(M) candidate Manoranjan Talukdar, who was fielded for the first time in 2011, could garner only 20,000 votes which was much below than the expectations. Despite the loss of party candidate in 2011, the Sorbhog assembly seat is still seen as a Left bastion in the state.

The CPI(M) is working hard to regain this Left bastion in the ensuing Assembly election. On March 4, the party had convened a general meeting of the party members and supporters to form the central election committee for the Sorbhog Assembly constituency which saw a huge turnout of around five thousand people. Amidst the huge applause by jubilant supporters, veteran party leader Hemen Das, the four times MLA from this constituency and whose age is now 87, made an emotional appeal to all workers to regain the seat again so that he could see a CPI(M) MLA from here. In the next assembly election, it may not possible for him to campaign for the party candidate due to his advanced age. Therefore, he wants his wish to be fulfilled in this election itself. This appeal of the veteran leader has gone deep into the hearts of the party workers and supporters who have jumped into action for the victory of the party candidate. The central election committee was formed on the day of the declaration of election days itself with Parimal Majumdar as President, Kamala Barman as General Secretary and Nripesh Ray as Treasurer. The party has decided that veteran leader Manoranjan Talukdar will contest for the second time from this constituency. The party has already completed its election preparation in this constituency. Booth-level committees and area level committees have been formed in most places. 0n18th March, after the filing of nominations by the candidate, the election campaign is gradually taking the momentum. The party has put importance on door to door campaigning and small mahalla meetings. However, large rallies will also be held to cope with the campaign by other parties. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar is scheduled to address two rallies on 3^rd April.

There are certain factors which are working in favour of the CPI(M) candidate this time. The sitting BJP MLA Ranjit Das no longer enjoys his past popularity even among his supporters. The general voters who  had voted for him last time has got disillusioned with his poor performance and corruption. An independent candidate Pradip Debnath backed by BPF, a party which is officially a poll alliance partner of BJP and AGP, is likely to eat into the vote base of the BJP. Similarly, the grassroots level AGP workers are strongly opposed to the tie-up between AGP and BJP and they have fielded an independent candidate floating a new outfit. Besides, the Congress and AIUDF supporters are deeply unhappy with their respective party candidates as their candidates do not enjoy mass base in the constituency. In such a situation, the CPI(M) candidate, with his mass base and popularity cutting  across the party lines, may emerge as the rallying point of all anti-BJP forces. The general wave in the constituency is against the BJP and its sitting MLA. There is a possibility of the polarization of all anti-BJP votes in favour of  a  single candidate who will have the most winning chance. Right now, among the total 15 candidates in the fray, only the CPI(M) candidate has the potential to bring together all Anti- BJP votes in favour of him. Nearly sixty thousand Muslim votes will be a deciding factor in the constituency. Majority of the Muslim votes are likely to shift to the most acceptable  and winnable secular candidate and the CPI(M) nominee Manoranjan Talukdar may emerge as the most formidable candidate to take on the BJP in Sorbhog assembly seat. Under that circumstances, the party candidate has a bright chance of winning the seat with a huge margin.