GUWAHATI, March 31: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday remembered the first martyr of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) movement, Dipanjol Das, while pledging not to allow contentious CAA to be implemented in Assam as the legislation is an “attack on Assam, its history, language and harmony”.
“I still recall the moments when I met the bereaved family of (anti-CAA movement martyr) Dipanjol Das…. Dipanjol was not just a youth… he was an idea, he was Assam…I felt at that time that the bullets fired at Dipanjol, was actually fired at Assam,” Gandhi said, while addressing a poll rally at Chaygaon in Kamrup district, where Dipanjol hailed from.
“I started my speech with Dipanjol, because this is the most important topic of the programme today. The BJP government did not do anything for Dipanjol, did not give him a job…..So one of our main guarantees is that the very legislation which took away his life, will never be allowed to be implemented,” he said.
“Our second guarantee is employment, which the BJP government could not give to youths like Dipanjol. We have guaranteed jobs to five lakh youths, not just government jobs, but to open up avenues in the private sector as well. The Narendra Modi government has ensured that the small and medium businesses, which generate jobs, are finished through the GST (goods and services tax),” Gandhi claimed.
The Congress leader, who campaigned for party candidate and incumbent Chaygaon MLA, Rekibuddin Ahmed and Boko candidate Nandita Das, also touched upon the guarantee of Rs 365 per day as minimum wage to the tea workers once the Mahajot comes to power.
“The BJP only made hollow promises to hike the tea workers’ wages five years back, which never happened. But we have discussed with the people, heard their issues and then come out with the five guarantees,” he said.
“We also promise a sixth guarantee that South Kamrup will be made a district of Assam,” he added.
Gandhi further took potshots at BJP, claiming “once the Congress comes to power in Assam, then Assam would be run from Assam and not from Nagpur.”
Later, he flew to Barkhetry in Nalbari district to address another poll rally.
Earlier, Gandhi offered prayers at the historic Kamakhya Temple atop Nilachal Hills here before embarking on the final leg of the poll campaign in Assam.