Guwahati, May 19 (IANS) Former Union Minister and four-time Lok Sabha member Rajen Gohain has resigned from the regional party Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) on Tuesday, citing personal reasons and indicating that he is no longer interested in active politics.

In his resignation letter addressed to AJP President Lurinjyoti Gogoi, Gohain said he was stepping down from the party’s primary membership as well as all responsibilities associated with the regional outfit with immediate effect.

“Through this letter, I, Rajen Gohain, hereby resign from the primary membership and from all posts and responsibilities associated with the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) with immediate effect due to personal reasons,” the letter read.

He also expressed gratitude to the party leadership, workers and supporters for their cooperation during his association with the AJP.

Speaking after tendering his resignation, Gohain said that he had taken the decision for personal reasons and was not considering a return to active politics. “I am not thinking of returning to politics,” he said.

Gohain, a prominent political figure from central Assam, had joined the Assam Jatiya Parishad after quitting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a party with which he had shared a long political association spanning several decades.

He represented the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency four times as a BJP candidate and emerged as one of the key faces of the party in Assam during its expansion phase in the state.

Gohain was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1999, 2004, 2014 and 2019 from the Nagaon seat, which was considered to be a bastion for the BJP.

During the Narendra Modi-led government’s first term at the Centre, Gohain served as the Union Minister of State for Railways. He was considered an influential leader in Upper and Central Assam and played a significant role in strengthening the BJP’s organisational network in the region.

However, his relations with the BJP leadership deteriorated ahead of the 2026 Assam Assembly elections.

He eventually quit the party and joined the newly formed regional outfit Assam Jatiya Parishad, which was floated after the anti-CAA movement in the state.

Gohain later contested the recently concluded Assembly elections on an AJP ticket but suffered defeat. His resignation from the AJP is likely to trigger fresh political speculation in Assam, although the veteran leader has maintained that he wishes to stay away from politics now.

–IANS

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