From Our Correspondent
Guwahati: Journalists were barred from entering into the complex on Assam Legislative
Assembly to cover filing of nomination filed by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh as a Congress candidate for Rajya Sabha election scheduled on May 30 next.
The PM later came out to meet protesting journalists after filing nomination papers to talk to them while chief minister Tarun Gogoi and AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh admitted that there was a lapse and lack of communication that had led to the impasse. Gogoi that such a situation will never recur again.
The PM came out to the main gate of Assembly complex and told the journalists, “People of Assam have done unique honour by electing me to Rajya Sabha where I have represented the State for over 21 years so far. My efforts will continue to alleviate poverty and solve other major problems facing this land of Assam.”
Earlier, infuriated at being denied permission to cover the event the journalists including many senior accredited journalists staged protest demonstration in front of the entrance to the Assembly Complex and shouted slogans like “Save democracy”, “shame, shame” even as Dr Manmohan Singh filed his nomination papers to Assembly’s principal secretary G P Das.
He also attended a meeting of Congress legislature party and MLAs from Congress ally Bodoland People’s Front (BPF).
Senior journalists commented that it was unprecedented as in all the earlier four occasions when Dr Manmohan Singh filed nomination papers to contest Rajya Sabha polls from Assam in 1991, 1995, 2005 and 2007 journalists were allowed to cover the event.
As the journalists continued to agitate, the administration later decided to allow them inside the complex after Dr Singh had filed nomination papers.
However, the scribed decided to continue with the protest as they had been deprived of their right to carry out the professional duty to cover the event of PM of the country filing nomination papers for RS poll.
Inspector General of Police S N Singh said he was not aware of the reasons for which journalists were not allowed to cover the event this time and promised to come back to them after collecting detail information about it.
A section of the protesting journalists commented that journalists were kept at bay as Tarun Gogoi government wanted to shield the PM from facing embarrassing questions about growing dissidence within ruling Congress in Assam and episodes corruption like coalgate, railgate etc. that are rocking the Congress-led UPA government in the Centre.
Given the overwhelming strength of the ruling Congress party in 126-member Assam Assembly, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh is all set to become Rajya Sabha member from Assam for the fifth consecutive term.
Dr Singh was first elected to Rajya Sabha from Assam in 1991. He was then re-elected in 1995, 2001 and 2007. He has a rented house in the city with the address: House No. 3989, Nandan Nagar, Ward No. 51, Sarumataria, Dispur, Guwahati-781006.
The house is owned by Hemaprova Saikia, a senior Congress leader, former minister and widow of former Assam chief minister and Congress leader Late Hiteswar Saikia.
All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) too today staged protests on the street in front of its headquarter at Uzan Bazar in the city against Dr Singh filing nomination for RS poll for the fifth consecutive time from the State.
The ASSU stated that Dr Singh had lost right to represent Assam as he failed burning problems of Assam including problem of illegal migration from Bangladesh, flood and erosion etc.
Singh’s term as Member of Parliament expires on June 14 with the Election Commission announcing the polls for two Rajya Sabha seats from Assam on May 30, the second seat being held by AGP MP Kumar Deepak Das. The notification for the polls was issued on May 13.