Guwahati: Dissident Assam Pradesh Congress Committee leader and state health minister Dr Himanta Bishwa Sharma has submitted to chief minister Tarun Gogoi a list of 10 reasons why the Congress performed miserably in the Lok Sabha elections in the state.
Dr Sharma said he had been called in by the chief minister at his official residence to discuss the current political situation in Assam in the wake of drubbing of the party at the hands f the BJP in the just concluded polls.
“I have put forward 10 points before the chief minister as reasons for party’s defeat at the hands f the BJP and for en bloc shifting of many traditional vote bases of the party among certain ethnic communities. It is now up to him as a chief minister to decide what to do to strengthen the party before 2016 assembly election.”
He informed that riots in Bodoland areas, unresolved ‘D’ voters issue, failure to implement Food Security Act, failure to provide individual electricity meters at the quarters of tea garden workers etc. were some of the key factors that contributed to the party’s debacle in the Lok Sabha polls.
Regarding dissidents’ demand for reshuffle of the state cabinet, Dr Sharma said: “None of the unhappy MLAs is aspiring for minister’s post. What they need is proper atmosphere and support from the government to work for the people of their respective constituencies. Their problems needed be solved by the CM. I have told the CM to discuss micro issues with the dissident MLAs.”
He refused to go into the details of the problems related to the Assam Congress Legislature Party, saying he would not be able to discuss the problems related to the ACLP before the media in view of restrictions imposed by the AICC.
“When the problems related to the ACLP are being tackled by the AICC leaders including Ghulam Nabi Azad, C P Joshi in New Delhi why should I comment on it,” Dr Sharma asked.
He said that comments on the current problems within the ACLP could be made only by AICC leaders – Golam Nabi Azad and C P Joshi, who have been assigned to resolve the issue by talking to dissident party MLAs.
In fact, the All India Congress Committee has barred all the ministers and MLAs in Assam from speaking to the media about the current problem of dissidence dogging the ACLP headed by chief minister Tarun Gogoi even as the AICC- appointed senior party leaders are trying to resolve the crisis arising out of demand.
Gogoi who let for New Delhi in the afternoon, also met another senior dissident camp MLA, Sarat Borkotoky in the morning hours before his meeting with Dr Himanta Bishwa Sharma.
