Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday claimed that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had once asked him to prepare for taking over as Chief Minister during the internal crisis in the party around 2014-2015, but the move was stalled by Rahul Gandhi.

Sarma said the development took place at the peak of his conflict with then Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, during a period when the Congress in Assam was facing serious internal divisions.

According to Sarma, a majority of party MLAs were backing him at the time. He stated that around 58 legislators were in favour of a leadership change, while a few others chose to remain neutral.

The episode unfolded amid growing tensions between Sarma and Gogoi, especially after Gogoi’s son Gaurav Gogoi became politically active in the state. The strain eventually widened the rift within the Congress leadership in Assam.

The political developments culminated in Sarma leaving the Congress and later joining the BJP. In the 2016 Assembly elections, the BJP ended the Congress’s long rule in Assam and formed its first government in the state under Sarbananda Sonowal as Chief Minister, with Sarma playing a key role in the party’s rise.

Gaurav Gogoi, now a prominent face of the Opposition and currently leading the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee, is expected to be central to the Congress campaign in the upcoming Assembly elections, where he is set to take on Sarma and the ruling BJP.