Summary:
The BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance (Neda), which Himanta had steered, had started out strong in 2016. "We believe BJP and Neda will win 19-20 of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in the region (including Sikkim)," he said. Barring AGP, Bodoland People's Front and Nationalist Democratic People's Party, all Neda partners have either chosen to contest the Lok Sabha election on their own or quit the alliance. Himanta said he does not wish to discuss the matter any further since he has already accepted the decision of the party president. Kaliabor has a sizeable Muslim voter base, which can swing the election outcome if they vote as one bloc..