Sarbananda Sonowal

Sarbananda Sonowal (; born 31 October 1962) is an Indian politician who is serving as the 2nd Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways since 2021. He also has been a Member of the Rajya Sabha representing Assam since 2021 and also a member of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs since 2021. He previously served as the 14th Chief Minister of Assam (2016–2021), as a member of Assam Legislative Assembly for Majuli (2016–2021) and for Moran (2001–2004). Sonowal earlier served as the Assam state unit President of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from 2012 to 2014 and again from 2015 to 2016. He also served as the Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs, Government of India, from 2014 to 2016 and the Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Skill Development from 2014 to 2014 and the member of the Lok Sabha from Lakhimpur from 2014 to 2016 and from Dibrugarh from 2004 to 2009. He was also the member of the Asom Gana Parishad from 2001 to 2011.

Early life and education Sarbananda Sonowal was born on 31 October 1962 to a Sonowal family in Muluk Gaon located in the Dibrugarh district of Assam to Jibeswar Sonowal (father) and Dineswari Sonowal (mother).

Sonowal did his schooling at Don Bosco High School, Dibrugarh. He completed his B.A.(Hons) in English from Dibrugarh Hanumanbax Surajmall Kanoi College under Dibrugarh University and his LLB from Gauhati University and B.C.J from Gauhati University.

Career in the Bharatiya Janata Party

Sarbananda Sonowal resigned from all executive posts within AGP and left the party, due to dissatisfaction with and amongst the senior leadership of the party who were trying to forge an alliance with a party that was against the scrapping of the controversial IMDT Act. On 8 February 2011, Sonowal joined BJP in the presence of the then BJP National President Nitin Gadkari and senior leaders like Varun Gandhi, Vijay Goel, Bijoya Chakravarty and state BJP president Ranjit Dutta. He was immediately appointed as a member of the BJP National Executive and later on the State Spokesperson of the BJP unit, prior to his current assignment to head the state as the new president. On 28 January 2016, BJP Parliamentary Board announced Sarbananda Sonowal as BJP Chief Ministerial candidate of Assam.

Positions held

2001-2004: Elected as MLA, Assam Legislative Assembly from Moran Constituency 2004: Elected as Member of Parliament, 14th Lok Sabha from Dibrugarh Constituency 2005: Appointed Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Home Affairs 2006: Appointed Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Commerce & Industry 2011: Appointed National Executive Member of Bharatiya Janata Party 2011: Appointed State Spokesperson and General Secretary for Assam Bharatiya Janata Party 2012: Appointed State President for Assam Bharatiya Janata Party 2014: Appointed to head State's 16th Lok Sabha Elections Assam Bharatiya Janata Party 2014: Elected as Member of Parliament, 16th Lok Sabha from Lakhimpur Constituency 2014: Appointed Union Minister of State-Independent Charge, Republic of India 2016: Declared as BJP Chief minister candidate for 2016 Assam assembly elections. 2016-2021: Member of Assam Legislative Assembly from Majuli Constituency 2016–2021: 14th Chief Minister of Assam 2021–present: Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and Minister of AYUSH in the Government of India 2021–present: Member of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs in the Government of India 2021–2024: Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha 2024- Present: Member of Parliament, Dibrugarh Lok Sabha constituency

Electoral performance

Lok Sabha elections

Year Constituency Party Votes %Opponent Votes % Result Margin 1999 Lakhimpur 201,402 26.3 Ranee Narah 255,925 33.4 2004 Dibrugarh 220,944 35.0 Kamakhya Prasad Tasa 202,390 32.1 2009 324,020 43.2 Paban Singh Ghatowar 359,163 47.8 2014 Lakhimpur 612,543 55.1 Ranee Narah 320,405 28.8 2024 Dibrugarh 693,762 54.3 Lurinjyoti Gogoi 414,441 32.4

Legislative Assembly elections

Year Constituency Party Votes %Opponent Votes % Result Margin 2001 Moran 27777 42.64 Jibontara Ghatowar 26927 41.33 2016 Majuli (ST) 49,602 51.3 Rajib Lochan Pegu 30,679 31.7 2021 71,436 68.2 28,244 27.0

Personal life He is not married.

Social and cultural activities

President - All Assam Students Union, 1992–1999 Chairman - North East Students Organisation, 1996–2000

Arts & culture

The annual Guwahati International Film Festival was started during his tenure. It is organised by the State Government-owned Jyoti Chitraban (Film Studio) Society in association with the Dr. Bhupen Hazarika Regional Government Film and Television Institute. The first edition was held in October 2018, the second in October-November 2019. The 3rd edition has been postponed owing to the present COVID-19 pandemic to early 2021.

Role removing the IMDT Act

Faced with the problem of massive migration from Bangladesh into Assam, the government tried to put up legislation in place to detect and deport foreign nationals. Eventually, the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, 1983 (IMDT Act) came into being following the Assam Accord signed between the Government of India and the All Assam Students Union (AASU) to end the decade-long anti-foreigner agitation.

The IMDT Act is an instrument passed by Indian Parliament to detect illegal immigrants (from Bangladesh) and expel them from Assam. While the IMDT Act operates only in Assam, the Foreigners Act (1946) applies to the rest of the country. It is applicable to those Bangladeshi nationals who settled in Assam on or after 25 March 1971. Under the Act, the onus of proving the citizenship of a suspected illegal alien rests on the complainant, often the police. On the other hand, according to the provisions of the Foreigners Act, the onus lies with the person suspected to be an alien.

Sonowal took the issue of Bangladeshi infiltration to the Supreme Court. By its judgement dated 12 July 2005, the court struck down the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, 1983, as unconstitutional and termed Bangladeshi infiltration an "external aggression" and directed that "the Bangladesh nationals who have illegally crossed the border and have trespassed into Assam or are living in other parts of the country have no legal right of any kind to remain in India and they are liable to be deported."