Guwahati, Dec 20 (IANS): Assam Congress has received at least 74 applications for tickets to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The state unit of the party had earlier called for applications and also fixed an amount of Rs 1 lakh for seeking the nomination for the tickets.

Earlier, the last date for receiving the applications was fixed on December 19.

However, state Congress president Bhupen Borah said that the party has decided to extend the deadline until December 22.

It is significant that MP Gaurav Gogoi has not filed his application for the nomination of a Congress ticket yet.

He is an MP from Kaliabor constituency.

But after the delimitation exercise in Assam, Gogoi’s constituency was scrapped and a new Lok Sabha seat Kaziranga was introduced.

Ever since then, it was speculated that hemay seek a ticket from Nagaon Lok Sabha seat.

Pradyut Bordoloi won the Nagaon seat on a Congress ticket in the previous general election. This time also, he has sought a ticket for Nagaon.

Abdul Khaleque, another Congress MP in the state has applied for a ticket from his home constituency Barpeta which he won comfortably last time.

Meanwhile, the BJP has criticised the whole exercise of Congress and termed it as a strategy to collect donations for the party.