Of the four states going to polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party has a fighting chance only in Assam. A young leadership led by Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has mounted a spirited campaign against three times Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.
The BJP had won seven parliamentary constituencies in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. And now four of these constituencies would be voting on April 4 and it is essential for the BJP to sweep the first phase to win the state.
BJP leader Kamakhya Prasad Tasa said, "This phase is really important. We have a feeling that we will win many seats."
The areas going for polls on April 4 are from constituencies in upper Assam and Barak valley -- Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Tezpur, Lakhimpur, Kaliabor, Karimganj and Silchar. Apart from upper Assam, BJP is also targeting the Bengali Hindu votes of Barak valley.
Bijoy Sarma, former principal of a local college, said: "Given the constitution of the electorate, BJP has to perform well here than anywhere else."
The campaigning is over and Assam is set to vote but if BJP wants to take the train to Dispur, they will have to perform strongly in the first phase. After this the focus will shift to lower Assam where AIUDF and congress will slug it out.
Assam has the second largest percentage of Muslim voters in the country and a bulk of the population will vote in the second phase. Congress has said the very fact that April 4 is so important for BJP shows who has pan Assam appeal.
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said, "This shows that Congress is the only party which is acceptable to all cross section of society."
BJP knows the importance of the first phase. And they have relied on the high profile campaigning of not only Prime Minister Narendra Modi but also of BJP cheif Amit Shah and Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Smriti Irani among others. But whether that has struck a chord with the voters would be clear only on May 19.
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