BJP candidate Ajanta Neog has tested positive for COVID-19 a week ahead of the first phase of polling in Assam on March 27. She has been infected for the second time in seven months.

A former Minister, Ms. Neog is seeking to retain eastern Assam’s Golaghat Assembly seat that she had won four times since 2001 as a Congress candidate. She switched over to the BJP in December .

Ms. Neog, home quarantined, had been campaigning extensively for the past few days. Local party leaders did not rule out the possibility of some of her supporters carrying the virus.

The former Minister had tested positive in August and underwent treatment at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH).

She is the second BJP leader after MP Topon Kumar Gogoi to test positive for the second time.

Mr. Gogoi got himself tested at a screening centre at Sonari in eastern Assam during the thick of campaigning. His report came out positive. He had tested positive almost a year ago and was administered plasma at the GMCH.

Assam recorded 27 cases on Saturday taking the active cases to 303.

Since the first case was detected in April 2020, 1,100 people died of infection.