Assam Opposition alliance candidates shifted to Jaipur

The candidates included those from the Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) and the Left parties.

About 20 candidates of the Congress-led alliance of Opposition parties in Assam were shifted to a luxury hotel near Jaipur on Friday amid fears of horse-trading by the Bharatiya Janata Party before the announcement of results of the tightly contested State Assembly election on May 2. The candidates included those from the Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) and the Left parties. The Congress candidates were likely to join them shortly. There were speculation that the AIUDF candidates could be taken to Dubai, where Mr. Ajmal’s family has business interests. The candidates arrived in Jaipur by a chartered flight and were driven straight to the hotel, where the Congress MLAs from Rajasthan were also sequestered in July last year during the crisis in the State's ruling party. One of the candidates from Assam, seeking anonymity, said Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had made arrangements for their stay at the hotel.