Sherman Ali Ahmed. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
The All India Trinamool Congress fielded an Assam MLA who stirred the hornet’s nest by proposing the Miya Museum at the Guwahati Cultural Center five years ago.
Sherman Ali Ahmed figured in the list of seven candidates announced by the Trinamool on Sunday (March 22, 2026). He is contesting from Mandia, a Muslim constituency in Barpeta district of western Assam.
Mr. Ahmed, a government official-turned-politician known for speaking his mind, has been surrounded by controversy.
He won his first election in 2011 from the now defunct Baghbar constituency in Barpeta district as a candidate of the minority All India United Democratic Front. He later fell out with AIUDF chief and perfume baron Badruddin Ajmal and won the next two elections from Baghbar as the Indian National Congress candidate.
Mr Ahmed became a target of right-wing leaders after he proposed the Miya Museum at Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra in 2020. His troubles worsened after winning the 2021 polls when the Congress suspended him for “repeated violation” of party discipline.
In February, less than a month before the April 9 election, he joined the Raijor Dal, a party born in 2019 under the Anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and espousing a blend of regionalism and Assamese nationalism. He was promised a ticket by the Raijor Dal but resigned after a seat-sharing deal was struck with the Congress.
“I owe an apology to Sherman Ali Ahmed. We would have liked to field him but the Congress was against his nomination,” said Raijor Dal president and Sibsagar MLA Akhil Gogoi.
However, the Raijor Dal fielded Abdur Rashid Mandal, who defected from the Congress along with Mr. Ahmed. Mr. Mandal is contesting from Goalpara East constituency.
“I am from Assam but no party accepted me. I joined Trinamool with a heavy heart,” Mr Ahmed said, thanking the party led by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for giving him a chance.
Trinamool leader and Rajya Sabha member Sushmita Dev defended her nomination. “We are contesting seats where we are stronger than other opposition candidates. Our agenda is to unseat the BJP,” she told The Hindu.
“We are growing and in the Assam panchayat elections we have done better than some of the Congress alliance partners. We expect to do much better than in the last assembly elections,” she said.
Other candidates fielded by the Trinamool include Rojy Ahmed from the Hajo-Sualkuchi seat reserved for scheduled castes. She is the wife of the party’s state general secretary, Dulu Ahmed, who did not contest the Chamaria seat.
Published – 22 March 2026 21:57 IST
