DH Interview | BJP uses Assam's foreigner issue only politically, Congress took real steps for solution: Gaurav Gogoi

Gogoi's strong track record has made him the leader of the Opposition camp against BJP and its allies for the April 9 Assembly elections.

He is young, educated and vocal not just in public but also inside the Parliament. His victory in the Lok Sabha elections thrice in a row from Assam since 2014, led Congress appoint him as the party's state unit president and project him as the leader of the Opposition camp against BJP and its allies for the April 9 Assembly elections.

Amid the busy campaign schedule, Gaurav Gogoi, 43, told Sumir Karmakar of DH in Jorhat, his constituency, that people look at the Opposition camp for positive politics and inclusive governance. He blamed the BJP and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for using Assam's long foreigner issue only politically and claimed that Congress took real steps to find a solution.

Excerpts:

What makes you confident about Congress coming back to power in Assam after 10 years?

People of Assam are extremely resentful of the politics that is taking place under the leadership of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. He has promoted only those people who are tied to illegal mafia and syndicates. Now when political leadership in the state is linked to syndicate-linked people, then the state of affairs suffers. Assam's fiscal affairs, law and order, level of education and health, values of the society, quality of governance, everything is declining. People of Assam are basically fed up with this misgovernance.

In the coalition that has been formed by the Congress party, people see positive politics, positive ideas, positive mindset towards the society, healthy respect for all religions, caste, languages and communities. That is the Assam people want to live in and it is the people's response to us that is giving us the confidence.

But several Congress leaders have quit and joined BJP. How has this trend impacted the prospect of Congress?

I think more high profile leaders have left the BJP since Himanta Biswa Sarma has taken over than people leaving the Congress party. Rajen Gohain, a former Union Minister has left, most recently a tribal lady, Nandita Gorlosa, who was a minister in Sarma government has left, many former MLAs have quit because they feel that they find no space in BJP as Himanta Biswa Sarma gives importance to those who left Congress and joined him. The BJP is much more divided whereas Congress is much more robust.

BJP, particularly CM Sarma says providing security to the identity of the indigenous people, the Hindus, is the main issue in this election. What, according to you, are the issues?

Let me expose his hypocrisy first. He talks about indigenous Assamese, but when it comes to our Rajya Sabha elections, he takes votes of the AIUDF, the party headed by Maulana Badruddin Ajmal. He talks about the Hindus and then he makes the MLAs of the Ajmal's party join AGP, an ally of the NDA. Then he promotes those who have links with cow syndicates, cow smugglers...He talks about the indigenous people, but close to 12,000 acres or around 40,000 bighas of tribal land protected under the Sixth Schedule have been sold to Adani and Ambani.

He talks about the indigenous people and he obstructs the six major ethnic communities who want Scheduled Tribe status. So he is not in favour of any community. This kind of hypocrisy from the Chief Minister really disturbs the people. Therefore, for this kind of hypocrisy and double standard, people of Assam want to remove him from the chair of the Chief Minister.

In Assam, the foreigner problem is a long issue. So what is the solution you are offering to the people?

If you compare the track record between Congress and BJP, Congress party has done far more when it comes to deportations of people, who have come to India from Bangladesh illegally, Congress have done far more deportation than the BJP. The Congress party had started the entire exercise of updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam to solve this issue. But BJP left it incomplete.

When it comes to border fencing, even when there is a double-engine government, why aren't they be able to prevent smuggling of people, drugs, illegal infiltration from Bangladesh? It is still a porous border but it is a double-engine government. So Congress party understands the anxiety. This is the party which had signed the Assam Accord, we remained committed to the constitutional safeguards under Clause 6 of the accord. But BJP uses this only politically and in reality what they do is they end up promoting big corporates, big contractors and end up buying more land for their family members.

For the first time, Congress have stitched an alliance with two regional parties, Raijor Dal and Assam Jatiya Parishad. How will this help the Opposition camp?

People see that our parties, our ideologies complement each other. Rajor Dal comes from a farmers-based movement, AJP comes from politics of regionalism, Congress party practice the politics of nationalism. We have other parties called APHLC, party dominant in Karbi Anglong hills talking about aspirations of the tribals and the left parties also. So we have a rainbow coalition that represents the broad diversity of the people of Assam. Therefore, people feel that we will have a progressive government, a government that comes up with new ideas to work for the farmers, elderly, young people and different communities in Assam.

Muslim voters are strong political force. But this time you are not having an alliance with AIUDF. So by not having an alliance, don't you think the Muslim votes will get divided and ultimately help BJP in the elections?

Every community in Assam wants to be represented by a political party that looks after their interests. The AIUDF does not look after the interests of the minority communities. They only look after the interests of the BJP, and specifically Himanta Biswa Sarma. That is why they supported Himanta Biswa Sarma in the Rajya Sabha elections. So they don't think about the minority communities. The minorities have understood this and in the last Lok Sabha elections, head of AIUDF (Ajmal) lost by 10 lakh votes. That means people of all religion, caste, communities are rejecting communal politics.

BJP has taken up several schemes targeting the voters in the tea gardens. What is Congress doing to get the tea garden votes back?

If you look at the tea garden areas and the people surrounding the tea gardens, the situation is extremely poor. There is lack of drinking water, schools in tea gardens have shut down during Himanta Biswa Sarma's tenure, alcoholism has spread, violence against women has spread, many tea gardens have shut down during Sarma's tenure, many government tea gardens like Andrew Yule are unable to pay the wages to the labourers. So the entire industry, whether its big or small, the traders or the workers have been totally neglected by BJP, especially Himanta Biswa Sarma. You should ask how many tea gardens have been bought by his wife and other members of his family.

CM Sarma is also targeting you and your family, alleging your links with Pakistan.

Well it showed that Himanta Biswa Sarma is insecure, anxious. It showed Himanta Biswa Sarma is so desperate that he can make lies related to national security. So it showed his desperation, his weakness and his insecurity. I must say this ended up benefitting my political career.