Assam: Of Cong dissidence, BJP emergence, jihadi activities

Dissidence in ruling Congress, BJP winning maximum seats in the Lok Sabha polls, rise in jihadi activities, interrogation of two former Congress ministers in the Saradha scam and violence in Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD) were some major highlights in Assam in 2014.
The state's political scenario was dominated by continued dissidence in Congress, led by former Health and Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma who subsequently resigned from the ministry in July.
Sarma, along with at least 30 MLAs, revolted against Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi's style of functioning.
BJP capitalised on the situation and helped by a massive campaign exercise in the state led by Narendra Modi himself, came out with its best performance winning seven seats. Congress managed to win only three seats.

Principal Opposition party in the state assembly AIUDF also made considerable inroads increasing its tally from one to three whereas former ULFA 'commander' Hira Sarania, contesting as an Independent, wrested the Kokrajhar (ST) seat from the influential Bodoland Peoples' Front (BPF).
The Lok Sabha polls gave a fillip to the state BJP which launched a massive membership drive with an eye on the 2016 assembly polls in the state.

Assam also witnessed rise of jihadi activities with a key accused of the Burdwan blast and senior Jammatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) operative Sahanur Alom, his wife and brother along with several others arrested in the state.

Chief Minister Gogoi claimed jihadi activities are mainly confined to Barpeta district with some people from there and Nalbari being trained by JMB. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is investigating into the jihadi issue. According to state police, some top JMB leaders had visited a madrasa in Larkuchi village in Nalbari and organised motivational training to induct boys in order to create modules in Assam the way they did in West Bengal.
The tentacles of the Saradha scam was also traced to Assam with two former Congress ministers Anjan Dutta and Sarma quizzed by CBI in Kolkata while former DGP Sankar Barua allegedly took his life in September after the investigating agency searched his house along with that of 12 others in the state.