The Congress in Assam posed 19 questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the eve of his visit to Guwahati on Friday to inaugurate and launch a slew of infrastructure and health projects worth Rs 14,300 crore besides attending a mega Bihu dance performance at the Sarusajai Stadium here.
The Congress is the second Opposition party after the Assam Jatiya Parishad to pose questions to Modi ahead of his visit, all aimed at reminding him about the unfulfilled promises he and the ruling BJP made to the people of the state since 2014 on issues such as the foreigners’ issue, spiralling prices, unemployment, ST issue, corruption, flood and the Assam Accord. The state Congress also flagged the Adani Group issue.
Assam Mahila Congress president Mira Borthakur Goswami, who released the questions on Thursday, told The Telegraph that even as they welcome Modi’s visit to Assam they would like to have his “reply on the promises he made” to the people of Assam “way back in 2014”, the year the BJP came to power in Delhi. Two years later, the BJP unseated the Congress government in Assam. Today, the BJP or its allies are in power in all the states of the Northeast, once a Congress bastion.
Borthakur said: “The PM used to ask what former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ji did during his 23 years as RS MP from Assam. We now want to know why promises made by him and his party remain unfulfilled. He is about to complete two terms. He used to say Manmoham Sngh kept mum on inflation. Now we ask him when will he say something on inflation and corruption?”
Modi will be having a packed day in Guwahati on Friday. He will be inaugurating the AIIMS Guwahati and attend the Bihu dance performance and Gauhati High Court Platinum Jubilee Celebrations, among others.
The questions posed by the Mahila Congress president included:
- PM Modi had said all foreigners would have to pack their bags and leave after May 16, 2016. Has the foreigner problem been resolved?
- Leave alone declaring floods as a national problem, PM Modi didn’t once visit flood-affected areas of the state. Have the flood and erosion issues been mitigated?
- The border problem with Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, where people living in border areas pass sleepless nights and police personnel lose their lives. Can the PM answer why this is happening?
- Why Clause 6 of the Assam Accord for safeguarding the indigenous population is yet to be implemented?
- Why six communities promised ST status not been given their due till date?
- Why do we no longer hear about the NRC?
- When will prices of petrol, diesel, cooking gas and medicine decrease?
