Return Of The Native

Five years ago, Sarbananda Sonowal rose to power invoking Assamese identity. As the state goes to the polls once again, he faces the difficult task of redefining that identity in the light of the controversial new citizenship act. Also, a poll victory is no guarantee of getting back the chief minister’s chair

- Pratul Sharma/ Guwahati

Aserpentine road in Kharghuli Hills leads to a coveted address in Guwahati, one that gives a panoramic view of the city and the Brahmaputra. It is a state guest house named after the mighty river, and it has been the official residence of Sar bananda Sonowal since 2016, when he took over as Assam chief minister. The state has no designated residence for the chief minister, but Sonowal is not complaining. He has always stayed close to the rivers. He is, after all, a Sonowal; the eponymous tribe known for extracting son, or gold, from the riverbed.

The Brahmaputra, notoriously ferocious during the monsoon, is serene now—unmindful of the intense political battle unfolding along its banks. And so seems Sonowal, the state’s second tribal chief minister but the first to complete a full term. Soft-spoken and amiable, he had led the BJP to its first assembly polls victory in the northeast five years ago. This time, he faces a twin challenge: return to power and hold on to the chief minister’s chair.

The guest house, much like its occupant, is spartan and well-maintained. An elevator marked “CM’s Lift” signals that Sonowal is on his way from the third-floor suite to the second-floor dining room. He emerges from the elevator beaming, wearing an Assamese gamcha around his neck and a freshly-applied tilak on his forehead.

After exchanging greetings, he heads straight to the dining table. On it are shiny yellow bell-metal plates and utensils, distinctly Assamese. Breakfast is boiled vegetables—broccoli, beans and carrot—and moong dal and rice. And milk tea. It is what he has every single day.