List of Chief Ministers of Assam

List of Chief Ministers of Assam: The Chief Minister is considered as the head of the Government in a state. The position of a Chief Minister is appointed by the Governor of that respective state, after witnessing a clear majority in the State Legislative Assembly. The current Chief Minister of Assam is Himanta Biswa Sarma from BJP (Bhartiya Janata Party), elected in the 2021 elections by the present Governor, Jagdish Mukhi.

List of Chief Ministers of Assam

Assam’s Early Political Landscape and First Chief Ministers

Assam is situated in the northeastern part of India and is known to be one of the seven sisters, along with Indian states – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Tripura.

The history of Assam has always been seen as troublesome but a memorable one. In the beginning, Assam was ruled by a lot of dynasties until the Ahom people established their power in Assam in the 13th century hailing from Burma (Now Myanmar), they started capturing the territories of Assam and defeating various ruling powers such as the Koch and the Kachari.

During the 18th century, Ahom rulers were defeated by the warriors from Myanmar but later they recaptured their position again.

In 1824, in response to the first Anglo-Burmese war, the British took control in their hands and established the Treaty of Yandabo which further strengthened their claims after the expulsion of Burmese from Assam. The British used this as an opportunity, and in the facade of ensuring peace to the internal conflicts of Assam, they slowly started annexing the remaining kingdoms and consolidated their full control of Assam by 1854.

The first Chief Minister of Assam was Gopinath Bordoloi from the Indian National Congress (INC). It’s worth noting that for five elections since independence, INC was in power from 1950 to 1978, starting with Gopinath Bordoloi, Bishnu Ram Medhi, Bimala Prasad Chaliha, Mahendra Mohan Choudhary to Sarat Chandra Sinha.

List of Chief Ministers of Assam (1946-2023)

The Chief Ministers of Assam, the party they are affiliated to & the number of years they have been in power are:

Chief Minister	Tenure	Party
Gopinath Bordoloi (1st CM)	1946-1950	Indian National Congress
Bishnuram Medhi	1050-1957	Indian National Congress
Bimala Prasad Chaliha	1957-1970	Indian National Congress
Mahendra Mohan Choudhary	1970-1972	Indian National Congress
Golap Borbora	1972-1978	Janata Party
Anwara Taimur	1980-1981	Indian National Congress
Keshab Chandra Gogoi	1982-1985	Independent (supported by Congress)
Hiteswar Saikia	1985-1990	Indian National Congress
Golap Borbora (2nd time)	1990-1991	Janata Dal
Hiteswar Saikia (2nd time)	1991-1996	Indian National Congress
Bimala Prasad Chaliha (2nd time)	1996-2001	Indian National Congress
Tarun Gogoi	2001-2016	Indian National Congress
Sarbananda Sonowal	2016-2021	Bharatiya Janata Party
Himanta Biswa Sarma	2021-Present	Bharatiya Janata Party

Current Chief Minister of Assam

Himanta Biswa Sarma is the current Chief Minister of Assam. He won 60 seats out of 126 in the Assam Assembly Elections held in 2021. Ever since 2016, BJP has been the ruling party in Assam getting a clear majority in comparison to its competitors.

Name of Current CM	Himanta Biswa Sarma
Current Tenure	10th May 2021 – Ongoing
Email	cm@assam.gov.in
Helpline Number	0361-2262222, 0361-2237043
CM Office Address	CM Block, Janata Bhawan
Official Website	https://cm.assam.gov.in/

First Chief Minister of Assam

The first Chief Minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi is one of the most notable Chief Ministers of Assam. His strong stance on Assam and its people after independence made him a good leader. Before independence, Bordoloi was still fighting for the rights of Assam and also dealing with the illegal Bengali immigrants. It has been said several times that if it wasn’t for Bordoloi, the position of Assam on India’s Map would have looked different from what it is now.

Longest Running Chief Minister of Assam

Tarun Gogoi was the longest running Chief Minister of Assam, he won 3 elections in a row, the 11th-12th-13th elections of Assam, and ruled the office from 18th May 2001 to 24th May 2016. He represented the Indian National Congress.

Interesting Facts about the Chief Minister of Assam

There are a total of 15 Chief Ministers of Assam since its independence on April 1, 1946, with two chief ministers repeating their position; Hiteshwar Saikia from Indian National Congress and Prafulla Kumar Mahanta from Asom Gana Parishad.

• The first Chief Minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi led Assam in the most important years since it recently achieved its independence from colonial rule. His policies were more focused on building the unity of the people which was lost under British rule. Moreover, he also ensured that every one living in Assam has the access to necessities such as education, hospital, water, food, etc.

• Bishnu Ram Medhi took responsibility after Bordoloi and shifted his attention towards the socio-economic issues of the state. He recognized the need to expel illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and other countries because the resources were getting divided into them which resulted in the shortage of food and other basic amenities.

• Sarbananda Sonowal was the 14th Chief Minister of Assam and 1st candidate elected from BJP, but he eventually resigned from his post and suggested Himanta Biswa Sarma as the next Chief Minister of Assam. His tenure had various political developments in Assam such as his initiative to ban illegal smuggling of cattle as well as the establishment of Mission Basundhara launched in 2021, which aims at resolving any matters over land properties in Assam.

• Tarun Gogoi was the longest running Chief Minister of Assam, he won 3 elections in a row, the 11th-12th-13th elections of Assam, and ruled the office from 18th May 2001 to 24th May 2016. He represented the Indian National Congress.

Conclusion

Assam has been dealing with many challenges as well as controversies because of its geographical position. Several issues went on for years and still some are yet to be fully solved. The government had implemented various reforms and Acts to make the situation better but the lack of implementation is still a problem that has been a major problem in the development of Assam.

The government and the Chief Minister of Assam should focus on improving the implementation of reforms, learning from their failures, and bringing in policies and schemes that genuinely benefit the people of Assam.

FAQs- List of Chief Ministers of Assam

Who is the current Chief Minister of Assam?

Himanta Biswa Sarma is the current elected Chief Minister of Assam. He won 60 seats out of 126 in the Assam Assembly Elections held in 2021. Ever since 2016, BJP has been the ruling party in Assam getting a clear majority in comparison to their competitors.

Name the first Female Chief Minister of Assam.

Anwar Taimur – In reference to the list mentioned above, Anwar Taimur became the Chief Minister of Assam from 6th Dec 1980 to 30th June 198. She represented the Indian National Congress (INC).

How many chief ministers has Assam had till date?

There are a total of 15 Chief Ministers of Assam since its independence on April 1, 1946, with two chief ministers repeating their position; Hiteshwar Saikia from Indian National Congress and Prafulla Kumar Mahanta from Asom Gana Parishad.

Who was the first Chief Minister of Assam?

The first Chief Minister of Assam was Gopinath Bordoloi from the Indian National Congress (INC).

Which Chief Minister of Assam had the office for the maximum number of years?

Tarun Gogoi, won 3 elections in a row, the 11th-12th-13th elections of Assam and ruled the office from 18th May 2001 to 24th May 2016. He represented the Indian National Congress.