Raijor Dal president and Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi today said he tried to contact Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia several times but received no response, even though the two share a long political acquaintance. Gogoi said he made three phone calls to Saikia a day earlier, but none were answered. The claim comes at a time when a political storm is brewing over alleged remarks made by Saikia during a BJP video conference held on January 4 regarding voter list deletions.
Speaking to reporters, Gogoi accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of attempting to manipulate electoral rolls during the ongoing revision process in Assam. He alleged that during the January 4 online meeting, Saikia discussed the removal of nearly 10,000 names from voter lists, mostly belonging to people who do not support the BJP. According to Gogoi, the meeting initially focused on a wall-writing campaign but later shifted to discussions on voter list “corrections”.
Taking his allegations a step further, Gogoi publicly challenged Saikia to visit the Kamakhya Temple and take an oath before the goddess, denying that any such discussion took place. He said such a step was necessary to assure the people of Assam that the electoral process was fair and transparent. 
Gogoi also alleged that BJP workers and district presidents were instructed to submit booth-wise lists of non-supporting voters by January 12. He named Assam Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Ashok Singhal, accusing him of quietly overseeing voter list changes in around 60 Assembly constituencies.
The Raijor Dal leader said his party would submit a memorandum to the Election Commission of India, demanding seizure of the video conference recording and a thorough investigation. He added that if the poll body fails to act, he would approach the courts.
In another interaction, Gogoi claimed to have photographic proof of the online meeting and said the BJP would have denied its existence if this evidence had not surfaced. He also alleged that Saikia appeared uneasy during a recent press briefing and hinted that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma may have reprimanded him over the controversy.
Gogoi said he is willing to resign from his MLA post and leave politics altogether if his allegations are proven false. He reiterated that he is ready to take an oath at Kamakhya Temple alongside BJP leaders to “bring out the truth”. He also raised concerns about alleged voter deletions in Sivasagar and claimed internal dissatisfaction within the BJP, stating that several MLAs are unhappy and in touch with Raijor Dal.
