Pijush Hazarika slams Congress for charging Rs 1 lakh as ‘party ticket fee’

Guwahati, Dec 9: Following the circulation of a letter from the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) asking for Rs. 1 lakh to seek party ticket for Lok Sabha seats in the state, cabinet minister Pijush Hazarika slammed the party for asking a “non-refundable fee” for a Congress ticket.

Hazarika took a jibe at the Congress saying that the opposition has become a symbol of hypocrisy.

“This same cabal was protesting when the Assam Government charged a nominal processing fee of Rs. 300 for police permissions and today the cabal is charging Rs. 1,00,000 application fees,” Hazarika posted on X.

This comes after APCC circulated a letter wherein the party invited applicants willing to contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, 2024, and seek the party ticket from any of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state. However, the applicants are asked to pay Rs. 1 lakh as a ‘donation fee’ to the party.

“You are requested to fill in the enclosed form, and submit from 11th December, 2023 along with an Application Fee in the form of a Demand Draft of Rs 1,00,000/- (Rupees One Lakh only) drawn in favour of ‘Assam Pradesh Congress Committee,” the letter reads.

Speaking to The Assam Tribune, a source in APCC said, “The amount will be collected from the applications as a donation fee to the party. Last year, we collected Rs. 50,000 as a donation fee, however, following discussions with the party members, we have decided to increase the amount.”

He further clarified, “There might be a possibility for INC to vacate some of the seats in favour of our allies, and so, in that case, we would reimburse the application fee to the applicant. However, there will be no refund in other instances.”