Gaurav Gogoi during the protest march in Guwahati on January 30.
Credit: Assam Congress
The Congress-led Opposition alliance in poll-bound Assam on Friday alleged that the ruling BJP under CM Himanta Biswa Sarma's instructions was resorting to "vote chori" in the name of electoral rolls revision as it was "staring at sure defeat" in the Assembly polls slated in March-April.
The Opposition parties staged a massive protest in Guwahati on a day Home Minister Amit Shah attacked Congress while addressing two public meetings in eastern Assam's Dibrugarh and in Dhemaji in North Assam. Shah alleged that Congress failed to end conflict in Assam, stop infiltration, protect culture of the ethnic communities and ensure development despite being in power for decades.
"Fall of the Himanta Biswa Sarma government is now inevitable. The day the BJP government is removed from power, Himanta Biswa Sarma will have to go to jail. Sarma considers himself extremely powerful and so he is trying to snatch away people’s voting rights by destroying democratic values and misusing the Election Commission. He is desperate to return to power only to expand wealth in the name of his family and to hand over the lands of the Bodo, Rabha and Karbi communities to corporate houses like Adani and Ambani, which is why vote chori is being carried out," president of Assam unit of Congress, Gaurav Gogoi l, said, as he led the march with torch in hand.
The Opposition alliance earlier moved the Election Commission alleging that the BJP was trying to "illegally remove genuine voters" by filing fake objections, including against the victims of ongoing evictions (Bengali-speaking Muslims).
Gogoi said, “The opposition has united against vote chori. Seeing our unity, the people have gained courage. People are now saying that they are not afraid of Himanta Biswa Sarma. We will question him—‘Who is Himanta Biswa Sarma?’ In a democratic country, no one is more powerful than the people. The people of Assam will teach Himanta Biswa Sarma this lesson in the coming days.”
Addressing the gathering, Lurinjyoti Gogoi, President of Assam Jatiya Parishad President, a partner of the Opposition alliance, said, "The BJP made various promises to the people, including granting Scheduled Tribe status to six communities, but failed to fulfil them. Now attempts are being made to take away people’s voting rights.”
Raijor Dal led by Sivasagar MLA, Akhil Gogoi and the left parties are other partners of the Opposition alliance.