GUWAHATI, April 2: Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi campaigned for the Congress and its alliance in Assam, sounding the bugle for the upcoming Assembly elections by addressing public rallies in Karbi Anglong and Jorhat districts on Thursday.
Contrasting BJP’s “Delhi-centric” governance with Congress’ commitment to decentralisation, the Congress leader strongly raised the issue of indigenous rights.
He sharply criticised the government over the long-pending demand for autonomy in Karbi Anglong and the implementation of Article 244(A) of the Constitution.
In his speech at Bokajan in Karbi Anglong, Rahul said Article 244(A) empowers people to make decisions for themselves. Claiming that this provision was introduced by the Congress, he said, “Karbi Anglong should not be governed from Guwahati or Delhi, but by its own leaders and councils.”
Accusing the present government of handing over land and resources to corporates, he promised that Article 244(A) would be fully implemented in Karbi Anglong once Congress comes to power.
“We are fully committed to implementing Article 244(A). I have walked 4,000 kilometres from Kanyakumari to Kashmir; whatever I decide, I complete. You will not be run by remote control as now — you will have control over your own rights. Governance will be from here, not from Guwahati,” he asserted.
Rahul’s poll tour follows intensive election campaigns by AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and MP Priyanka Gandhi.
Referring to Assam’s pride and cultural legacy, Rahul recalled the ideals of Srimanta Sankardev, Bhupen Hazarika, Jyotiprasad Agarwala and Zubeen Garg. He said, “These personalities embodied the soul of Assam. They spoke of unity, rejecting hatred and violence. The idea I spoke of during the Bharat Jodo Yatra — ‘a shop of love in the market of hatred’—exists in the soul of the people of Assam.”
He further said that Zubeen never spread hatred or insulted anyone, but spoke of brotherhood and unity.
Raising the issue of “broken promises by the state government”, Rahul Gandhi referred to the wages of tea garden workers. He said “despite promising Rs 350 in the last elections and failing to deliver, the BJP is now shamelessly making a fresh false promise of Rs 500. Similarly, the BJP had falsely promised Scheduled Tribe status to six communities.”
He further alleged that “syndicate rule is being run in Assam under the direction of Delhi”.
Announcing five guarantees for the people at the rallies in Titabor and Bokajan, Rahul Gandhi said that Congress delivers on what it promises.
The Congress leader also launched a strong attack on the “double engine” government at the Centre and the state. Comparing Assam to a bouquet, he said, “Assam is a beautiful bouquet of diverse ideologies, religions and communities, where every identity must have its own space.”
The Leader of the Opposition sought full support from the people to form a government for the poor and working classes.
Emphasising that Assam should be governed from within the state, he called upon people at both rallies “to oust what he termed a Delhi-controlled and corrupt government.”
