Himanta Biswa Sarma will become the first non-Congress Chief Minister of Assam for the second straight term when he is sworn in on Tuesday (May 12, 2026).
The only other non-Congress Chief Minister who served two terms is Prafulla Kumar Mahanta of the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), but his tenures were separated by five years. Since the end of his second term in 2001, the AGP has been a minor partner of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Mr. Sarma’s party.
Three Congress stalwarts served as Chief Ministers of Assam thrice. However, both Bishnuram Medhi (August 1950 to December 1957) and Bimala Prasad Chaliha (December 1957 to November 1970) were in the post for two incomplete terms each. Tarun Gogoi was the only one to serve three complete terms, from May 2001 to May 2016.
Watch: Himanta Biswa Sarma to take oath as Assam CM on May 12
Hiteswar Saikia, Mr. Sarma’s mentor, was the Chief Minister twice — first during the peak of the Assam Agitation of 1979-1986 and then from June 1991 to April 1996.
