The Assam BJP has convened an important meeting of its office-bearers here on Friday to finalise the party’s strategy for the two-phase panchayat elections in December.

The secretary of the state BJP, Amiya Bhuyan, on Thursday said the meeting, which will be held at the PWD Convention and Training Centre at Dispur, will hammer out the strategy to be adopted by the party for the panchayat polls.

Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, state BJP president Ranjeet Kumar Dass, district presidents, districts prabharis (in-charge), among others.

Bhuyan said the party is fully geared up for the panchayat elections and is confident of winning.

On forging an alliance with the AGP for the elections, he said the state leadership has given the party’s district units the freedom to take a decision on tying up with the AGP at the local level after holding consultations with the local MPs and MLAs.

Panchayat elections in the state will be held in two phases on December 5 and December 9 and counting of votes will take place on December 12. Sixteen districts will go to the polls in the first phase and 10 in the second phase.

In another development, the All Bodo Students’ Union (Absu), the National Democratic Front of Boroland (Progressive) and the People’s Joint Action Committee for Boroland Movement on Thursday threatened a mass agitation if the state government does not fulfil their demands for inclusion of 539 villages in Sonitpur and Biswanath districts in the panchayati raj system.

“There are 50,000 people living in these 539 villages. They are not illegal migrants but genuine Indian citizens and have a legitimate right to vote in the panchayat elections. If they can vote in the Assembly and parliamentary elections, why not in the panchayat elections?” asked Absu president Pramod Boro.

He said they had submitted six memoranda to chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal but their demand is yet to be met.

According to a source in panchayat and rural development department, these are forest villages and hence, they are not included in the panchyati raj system.

“There are 482 villages in Sonitpur district and 57 villages in Biswanath district inhabited by Bodo, Mising, Karbi and other tribes. The State Election Commission has declared the date of the elections but we seek a clarification from the government within a week whether they will be allowed to vote in the upcoming panchayat elections,” the president of the NDFB (P), Dhirendra Boro, told reporters here on Thursday.

“We will launch a democratic mass movement in Guwahati if our demand is not fulfilled,” Absu general secretary Lawrence Islari said.