The Congress party has accused Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of obstructing the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi which recently began its Assam chapter. Congress general secretary in-charge of organisation, K C Venugopal stated in a statement released on the social media handle, X, on January 21st, “The most corrupt CM in India has been carrying out relentless attacks on our convoys, properties and leaders using his goons. This is a matter that every Indian must take seriously, because it exposes the BJP’s fascism and hooliganism. All across India, PCCs and DCCs are instructed to hold large scale protests tomorrow evening and exposing how the Modi-led BJP is killing democracy in Assam through their corrupt CM.” The Congress claims that permission was denied them and furthermore, they were also issued warnings for legal actions.
In response to this, the Congress went ahead and announced protest demonstrations across state and district headquarters. They have stated that there were planned attacks on the yatra convoys in Assam. In one incident, it has been reported that Assam Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah has reportedly sustained injuries in an attack on the yatra in Nagaon district. Furthermore, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh further claimed that his vehicle was also vandalised in the incident. The situation escalated when a crowd that reports allege was composed of BJP workers, reported attacked the yatra convoy led by Rahul Gandhi. According to visuals shared by ANI, Rahul Gandhi was seen getting of a bus and approaching the crowd that had gathered there. However, subsequently, amidst the chaotic scenes which saw the presence of various men who were displaying BJP flags, Gandhi’s security personnel and party members quickly ushered him back into the vehicle.
The Congress party has blamed the BJP, and has accused them of orchestrating the attacks, labelling it a desperate attempt to divert attention from administrative failures and corruption allegations against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the BJP government at the Centre. The incident occurred during the yatra’s journey from Biswanth district to Nagaon.
In response, Rahul Gandhi has stated, “They think that Congress is scared of BJP and RSS, they’re dreaming. They can tear as many posters and placards as they want, we don’t care. We are not scared of anybody, we are neither scared of PM Narendra Modi nor Assam CM.”
Similarly, Rahul Gandhi and his convoy were reportedly forbidden and prevented from entering a temple in the same state. According to Hindustan Times, on January 22 Gandhi stated that he was prevented from entering a temple while attempting to visit Batadrava than in Assam which is considered the sacred birthplace of Saint Srimanta Sankardeva. The report has stated that this incident took place only a day after the Assam Chief Minister Himanta Kumar Biswa told Gandhi to visit the temple only after the Ram Temple inauguration in Uttar Pradesh, which is on January 22, so that no “unnecessary competition” would take place.
The Congress party is demanding a judicial inquiry and has highlighted the involvement of BJP members.
The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is charting a journey covering a substantial 833 kilometres, spanning across 17 districts in the north-eastern state. It is slated to travel across Assam until January 25, 2024.
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