Minister Pijush Hazarika pauses speech during Namaz at nearby Mosque in Baksa district

Guwahati: In a gesture of respect, minister and BJP leader Pijush Hazarika paused in between his public speech, when Namaz was playing at a nearby mosque, during an election rally in Baksa district on Wednesday.

In the video shared by the BJP leader, it is seen that he paused for a while when the Namaz was recited at the Mosque located at an arm’s length from the podium.

Baksa in lower Assam falls under Kokrajhar Lok Sabha constituency.

Four Lok Sabha constituencies in Assam - Barpeta, Dhubri, Guwahati, and Kokrajhar - will go to polls in the third phase set to be held on May 7, bringing the curtains down for all 14 parliamentary seats in the State.

Ten seats in Assam had voted in the previous two phases that was held on April 19 and April 26.

These four seats are crucial for both BJP and Congress. BJP, as part of its overall 400-seat target at the national level, will try to max out its seat tally in the state while on the other hand, the Congress party are targeting as many seats as possible at a time when the party state’s unit is in disarray.

In fact, all four seats headed for polls in the third phase have sizable population of Muslim voters, and the BJP notably this time is trying to reach out to them. BJP which is trying to maximize its tally in the State is faced with an uphill task with minority voters being a significant factor. However, with the AIUDF and the Congress both vying for the minority vote the BJP could benefit from the division.

Chief minister upped his outreach and reiterated everyday in his campaign trail that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has treated all sections of the society equally and all its schemes and programs reached all communities, including Muslims.

On April 19, Himanta addressed a rally in Nagaon’s Dhing, where as per estimates Muslim voters are over 80 per cent in numbers. The rally saw thousands from the community coming and patiently hearing the chief minister. Since then, in all election rallies, minority voters have been turning up in huge numbers.

This Lok Sabha election in Assam, the BJP is contesting in 11 out of 14 seats, while its ally parties, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), are contesting in two seats (Barpeta and Dhubri) and UPPL in one seat (Kokrajhar), respectively.

In the Lok Sabha elections of 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured 7 of the 14 seats in Assam. Both the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) claimed three seats each. During the 2019 elections, the BJP increased its seat count to 9, while the Congress maintained its three seats, and the AIUDF won a single seat. (ANI)

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