People stand in a queue to cast their votes for the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) elections at a polling centre near Urahiloga village, in Sonitpur on September 22, 2025.
| Photo Credit: ANI
GUWAHATI
The Bodoland People’s Front (BPF), a former ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is poised to emerge as the single-largest party in Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) elections.
The party was leading in 21 of the autonomous council’s 40 seats, more than 12 hours after the counting of votes began at 8 a.m. on Friday (September 26, 2025). The results are expected by Saturday (September 27, 2025) morning, officials of the State Election Commission said.
The ruling United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) was leading in 11 and its ally-turned-rival BJP in eight seats, almost as many seats as they won in the 2020 BTC polls.
The elections to the BTC, currently ruled by the UPPL, BJP, and the regional Gana Suraksha Party, were held on September 22. The council governs the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), comprising five districts – Baksa, Chirang, Kokrajhar, Tamulpur, and Udalguri.
The BPF, led by former extremist Hagrama Mohilary, ruled the BTC for 17 years until 2020. A long-term ally of the Congress party, it switched allegiance to the BJP ahead of the 2016 Assam Assembly elections.
Coalition math
The BPF severed ties with the BJP and temporarily joined a Congress-led grand alliance during the 2021 State polls. Thereafter, it warmed up to the BJP but steered clear of a formal alliance.
The BJP seeks to secure a simple majority with at least 21 seats in the council. If the verdict is fractured, the BJP might ally with either the BPF or the UPPL.
During the run-up to the BTC polls, the BJP stated that it believed in maintaining cordial ties with both the regional parties. The saffron party kept its options open by not going for a pre-poll alliance with the Pramod Boro-led UPPL, unlike in 2020.
In 2020, the BPF emerged as the single-largest party with 17 seats, but the UPPL with 12 seats and the BJP with nine cobbled up the numbers with smaller parties to form the government in the BTR.
The BTC elections are seen as the “semifinal” of the 2026 Assembly polls in Assam.
Approximately 78.42% of the 26.58 lakh voters cast their votes to decide the fate of 316 candidates. EOM
Published – September 26, 2025 11:41 pm IST
