Nazira in Upper Assam’s Sivasagar district, a Congress bastion tied to the Saikia family for over five decades, heads into a high-stakes 2026 rematch. Incumbent Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia seeks a fourth straight win against BJP’s Mayur Borgohain, who nearly unseated him in 2021, as the BJP intensifies efforts to finally crack this Congress fortress.
Nazira constituency, located in Upper Assam’s Sivasagar district, remains one of the major strongholds of the Congress party in Assam. The area boasts a rich cultural heritage. The constituency in Upper Assam’s Sibsagar district is one of the most politically significant seats, known for strong organisational presence of major parties. The incumbent MLA is Debabrata Saikia of the Congress. Debabrata (61), who currently serves as the Leader of Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly, has won the seat three consecutive times and is now eyeing a fourth consecutive term.
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A seat that primarily goes to Congress, it has also seen MLAs from the Communist Party of India and the Asom Gana Parishad (in a past by-election). With the United Opposition, the Asom Sonmilito Morcha (ASM), led by Congress and consisting of other parties such as Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), and Communist Party of India (Marxist) among others set to offer a tough fight to the BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Nazira holds an important position. BJP has never won the seat in the history of Assam, but is campaigning aggressively to breach the Congress fortress.
For over five decades, the Nazira seat has been synonymous with the Saikia family. Former Chief Minister Hiteswar Saikia won the seat five consecutive times in 1972, 1978, 1983, 1985, and 1991. His wife, Hemoprava Saikia, carried the family legacy forward by winning the 2001 assembly elections. Now, the major fight is squarely between their son, Debabrata Saikia of the Congress, and Mayur Borgohain from the BJP.
The upcoming 2026 Assam assembly elections promise a thrilling rematch. In the 2021 elections, Debabrata Saikia faced an unexpectedly tough fight from Mayur Borgohain, scraping through with a razor-thin margin of just 683 votes. While Saikia bagged 52,387 votes (47.56%), Borgohain polled 51,704 votes (46.94%). This was a drastic shift from 2016, when Saikia comfortably defeated BJP candidate Prohlad Gowala by over 14,000 votes.
While other candidates, including CPI's Kanak Gogoi, are in the 2026 fray, the principal contest remains a straight fight between BJP and Congress. Borgohain (44), emboldened by his 2021 near-miss, is looking for a comeback and his first electoral victory. He aims to turn votes in his favor by focusing on local development issues, such as repairing bad roads in interior areas and solving drinking water shortages, hoping to finally establish a BJP candidate there. Meanwhile, Saikia is relying on his family’s deep historical roots and decades of service to retain the constituency's trust in a battle that will be closely watched across the state.
(Rh/GP)
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