AAP launches membership drive in upper Assam, sets sights on assembly polls

Dibrugarh: With the Assam assembly elections on the horizon, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has intensified its grassroots outreach in upper Assam.

Over the past weekend, the party headed by AAP Assam acting president and national joint secretary Bhaben Choudhury has launched a series of high-decibel membership recruitment drives and organisational meetings across Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts, eyeing the tea tribe electorate.


On Monday, around 250 members from the tea community officially joined the party during a meeting at Tingrai, Tinsukia. This follows a gathering on Sunday at the Hijuguri area of Tinsukia and a prior election preparation meeting on Jan 3 at Raidongia, Moran in Dibrugarh district.

The focus on the tea community is a calculated move by the AAP leadership. In upper Assam, the tea tribe vote bank is often the deciding factor in several constituencies. By conducting ‘Chuburi (neighbourhood)’ meetings and forming panchayat committees, the party is attempting to build a bottom-up structure to challenge the established dominance of BJP and Congress.

Addressing media persons, Choudhury said the party remains undeterred. “The enthusiasm we are seeing in Tingrai, Hijuguri and Moran proves that the people of Assam are looking for an alternative to the status quo. Our focus is on the welfare of the tea workers and the common man. We will soon announce our candidates for Dibrugarh and Tinsukia. A decision will also be taken soon whether to contest all the assembly seats or not across the two districts,” Choudhury said.

The recruitment drive comes at a critical juncture for the party in upper Assam, which has faced a leadership void since its prominent local face, former Assam AAP president Manoj Dhanowar, resigned and joined BJP last year. Dhanowar, who belongs to the tea community, had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Dibrugarh, securing a respectable third-place finish behind BJP heavyweight Sarbananda Sonowal and AJP’s Lurinjyoti Gogoi.

AAP’s current strategy appears to be an attempt to directly fill the vacuum left by Dhanowar’s exit and mobilise the very voter base he once represented. By targeting the tea community, which holds considerable sway over numerous assembly constituencies in upper Assam, the party aims to position itself as a viable alternative.

Political observers note that while AAP faces an uphill battle against established regional forces, its concentrated campaign in the tea belt indicates a focused strategy to carve out a niche. The coming months will reveal whether this groundwork can translate into a significant political challenge in the 2026 assembly polls.