Educational credentials of BJP candidates contesting Silchar civic polls questioned
The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) has challenged the educational claims of 13 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominees in the Silchar Municipal Corporation elections scheduled for October 3, 2026, alleging discrepancies in affidavits and a lack of action by election authorities despite formal complaints.
AJP flags alleged discrepancies in 13 affidavits
Addressing journalists at the AJP office in Guwahati on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, AJP leader Kunki Chowdhury said her party had submitted complaints against 13 BJP candidates to the State Election Commission (SEC) and district-level poll officials. She alleged that the authorities “failed to take necessary steps” to examine the claims and act on the complaints.
“The affidavit of Kanchan Deb, the BJP’s candidate for Ward 6, says he obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from Sikkim International University in 2018. However, information available indicates that the university was established in 2021,” Ms. Chowdhury said.
She also cited the case of Uttam Kumar Gowala, the BJP’s candidate for Ward 39, whose affidavit shows he cleared Class 10 in 1999 and Class 12 in 2024. “We sought clarification on the gap between the two qualifications,” she added.
Further, Ms. Chowdhury questioned the degrees listed by Pratiksha Deb (Ward 14) and Paplee Karmakar (Ward 15), both of whom obtained qualifications from a university in Jodhpur in 2013 and 2019, respectively. She referred to media reports alleging that the Jodhpur-based institution had issued fake degrees in the past.
Related legal action in Silchar
Separately, a Silchar court earlier issued a summons to Ataur Rahman Laskar, the BJP’s candidate for Ward 17, after three individuals challenged the veracity of his educational claims. According to his affidavit, he acquired a BA from a controversial Sikkim-based university.
Polls mark first civic election since Silchar’s upgrade
The October 3 vote will be the first civic election in Silchar—an urban hub of southern Assam’s Barak Valley—since the town was upgraded from a Municipal Board to a Municipal Corporation in September 2025. Elections were not held after the Silchar Municipal Board was dissolved in April 2020.
The Silchar Municipal Corporation comprises 42 wards. The BJP has already secured two wards uncontested. In Ward 18, the Congress candidate joined the BJP a couple of days ago, leaving an independent candidate as the only rival to the BJP nominee.
What’s next
As the campaign enters its final stretch, the AJP’s complaints place renewed scrutiny on candidates’ affidavits and the response of election authorities. The SEC and district-level officials have not publicly commented in the material cited by Ms. Chowdhury. Voting is set for October 3, with the outcome likely to shape the first full term of the newly formed municipal corporation in Silchar.
