The Congress in Assam on Wednesday launched a no-holds-barred attack on Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for his role in poll-bound Jharkhand while urging the people of the poll-bound state “not” to fall for his “polarising rhetoric”.
Sarma is the BJP’s co election in-charge of Jharkhand and has been making frequent trips to the poll-bound state to mobilise the state unit for the electoral contest against the ruling JMM-Congress-RJD combine in the state.
Launching the attack on Sarma, Assam PCC president Bhupen Kumar Borah said: “The BJP has pressed into service, in poll-bound Jharkhand, India’s finest ‘horse trader’ Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma. Already, Sarma has bagged his first ‘horse’ in former Jharkhand CM Champai Soren, and is looking to ‘buy’ more.”
The BJP has been frequently deploying Sarma as a vote-catcher outside since 2022.
Borah mainly targeted Sarma on three counts — his efforts at “poaching” leaders from other parties to strengthen the BJP, to “polarise” the electorate along religious lines and “failure” to deliver the goods in his home state. Sarma has been flagging issues such as illegal Bangladeshi immigrant-induced demographic changes, “love jehad” and “land jehad” in Jharkhand.
The PCC president also injected an element of intrigue by claiming how Sarma was “trying to overshadow future claimants to leadership in the post-Modi era, such as Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath, Nitin Gadkari, etc’ while his state (Assam) has been “wrecked by a series of crises” like floods and planting of bombs by ULFA, among others.
“Himanta Biswa Sarma talks about demographic change in Jharkhand because of Bangladeshi influx. This begs the following questions: 1. What is the BJP government doing to secure our borders? 2. What has Himanta Biswa Sarma done to solve Assam’s ‘illegal migration’ problem? After all, he had been the Minister in charge of Assam Accord implementation?” Borah asked.
Sarma has been flagging the issue of demographic changes, and laws to curb love jehad and land jehad in Assam too, of late. The cause of these problems, according to Sarma and the BJP, are Muslims, who had their origins in present-day Bangladesh.
However, the Congress-led Opposition bloc as well as prominent individuals have said the implementation of Clause 6 of the 1985 Assam
Accord providing constitutional safeguards to the Assamese people as well as a notified updated NRC were the answers to securing the future of the indigenous Assamese people.
“The people of Assam deserve better. They deserve a Chief Minister who prioritizes their welfare and works tirelessly for their benefit. Sarma must correct his priorities and put Assam first. He should first set his own House in order, save Assam first by getting Clause 6 and NRC implemented,” Borah said, referring to his frequent trips to Jharkhand.
