Jorhat, March 8: The Asom Gana Parishad’s magnanimity has cost the party dear with its Majuli district committee resigning en masse today in protest against the leadership’s decision to leave the lone seat to the Gana Shakti for the forthcoming elections.

The decision had earlier also triggered an indefinite hunger strike by party workers of Majuli.

Led by the president, Phanidhar Tahu, the district committee tendered its resignation after the party formally took the decision at its steering committee meeting in Guwahati yesterday.

“It is an insult to the grassroot workers. The leadership has taken such a decision without holding any discussion with the grassroot workers,” the general secretary of the party’s Majuli district committee, Parama Kakoti, said.

Sources in the party said the miffed workers of the island are likely to field Padmeswar Doley who they were projecting as the AGP candidate, as an Independent.

Doley, a former minister during the Prafulla Mahanta-led government, fought the last Assembly elections as an Independent candidate after the party denied him a ticket.

The AGP had fielded Padmadhar Pegu, who bagged 17,000 votes against Doley’s 25,000. The division only helped the sitting Congress MLA, Rajib Lochan Pegu, to win the election, a scenario which could be repeated this time too if the rebels field Doley.

The final decision on fielding a candidate will be taken very soon.

Kakoti said the workers would take a final decision at a meeting to be held shortly.

“We had a clear chance of winning from Majuli. It is a dictatorial attitude by the party leadership to take such a decision and leave the seat to the Gana Shakti,” Kakoti said.

AGP workers on the island have been protesting since reports of the party leadership forging a seat sharing tie-up with the Gana Shakti surfaced about a fortnight back.

The Gana Shakti, a party dominated by the Mising community and led by Jonai MLA, Bhuban Pegu, was launched ahead of the 2006 Assembly elections.

According to the tie-up with the Gana Shakti, the AGP had not fielded candidates at Jonai and Majuli and the Gana Shakti would not contest in Dhemaji and Dhakuakhana — the constituencies having Mising voters.

“It is a win-win situation for both the parties,” an AGP leader said.

The AGP today announced the names of four more candidates for the ensuing Assembly election, raising the number to 70.

The names declared today are those of Tijen Basumatary from Chapaguri (ST), Munir Bokolial from Sonari, Hitesh Phukan from Duliajan and Liakat Ali Khan from Chenga constituency.