Lone Sitting MP from Assam Re-nominated by BJP, Rameshwar Teli is MoS in Ministry of Food Processing Industries

New Delhi: After having secured the prestigious Dibrugarh Lok Sabha constituency for the second consecutive term with the biggest margin in Assam, Rameshwar Teli has been charged with the role of Minister of State in the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries.

Jubilant with the news of his induction in Narendra Modi’s new team of ministers, Teli said from New Delhi, “It’s a huge responsibility and I will try to do justice with my action. People from Assam and the PM have bestowed their blessings on me and it’s now my time to deliver.”

Teli, a member of the tea tribe community, was the only sitting BJP MP from Assam to have been re-nominated by the party to contest in this election.

He defeated Congress veteran and five-time MP Paban Singh Ghatowar by a record margin of 3,64,566 votes.

In 2014, Teli had entered the Lok Sabha for the first time by defeating Ghatowar, the then sitting MP and ex-Union DoNER minister, by over 1.85 lakh votes.

With exit polls predicting an easy victory for Teli this time too, the lone point of interest was the margin of victory.

Despite facing anti-incumbency in several pockets of the constituency, Teli overcame all odds to bag the seat for the second time in a row.

The massive chunks of votes he managed to secure from the tea-belt Assembly segments made the victory easier. This also proved the BJP has successfully made inroads into the gardens of Assam.

With 3.4 lakh tea voters in the constituency which translates to around 30% of the total electorate, the victory of a candidate largely depends on the strong tea community.

Known for his clean image and simplicity, Teli said he was not running after a ministerial berth in the new government.

Teli said, “I’m thankful to my party for giving me the opportunity to contest from Dibrugarh. I was the only candidate from among the 2014 winners in Assam to be given a party ticket. It shows the party leadership’s confidence in me and I will try my best to fulfil the expectations of the people. It will be historic that the BJP will form the government at the Centre under Prime Minister Narendra Modi (for the second time).”

Being an active BJP leader for almost two decades, 48-year-old Teli began his political journey when he won his home constituency of Duliajan in 2001. He was re-elected to the Assam Assembly from the same constituency in Dubrugarh district in 2006.

However, he had lost the 2011 state election by only 3,000 votes to Congress’ Amiya Gogoi. In 2014, he became a BJP MP from the Dibrugarh constituency.