Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday, January 11, launched a sharp attack on the Congress over a statement allegedly made by newly inducted party leader Rezaul Karim Sarkar concerning the districts of Tinsukia and Sivasagar.
Sarma claimed that Sarkar’s remark amounted to an open declaration of the Congress party’s intent to alter the demographic composition of key districts in Upper Assam. Responding to the statement, which was reportedly made from a Congress platform, the Chief Minister accused the party of pursuing an agenda that threatens Assam’s social and cultural fabric.
“The statement made today from the Congress platform clearly indicates that they have openly declared their intention to bring people from Bangladesh and turn districts like Sivasagar and Tinsukia into ‘Miya’ lands,” Sarma said.
The Chief Minister also targeted Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, stating that he was present at the event where the remark was allegedly made. Sarma said Gogoi should have objected to the statement at the time. “Gaurav Gogoi was present when this statement was made. He should have protested against it,” he asserted.
Expressing strong personal disapproval, Sarma added that such remarks would not be tolerated in his presence. “If someone had made such a statement in front of me, I would have shoved them out,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Raijor Dal chief and Sivasagar MLA Akhil Gogoi also reacted strongly to Sarkar’s controversial comment. Sarkar, who joined the Congress on Sunday, reportedly stated that he would “turn Sivasagar into Dhubri and Dhubri into Sivasagar.”
Akhil Gogoi warned against any deliberate attempt to provoke social or political unrest. He said that if the remark was made unintentionally, it could be viewed differently, but if it was deliberate, he would oppose it “in the strongest possible terms.”
