Taking a tough stand on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) ahead of Assembly elections in Assam, the Congress on Tuesday announced that the party will build a memorial for those who died during the anti-CAA agitation in December 2019.
"After winning the election, we shall make a memorial for the anti-CAA people’s movement that has been going on in Assam over the past few years. The memorial shall remember the people’s struggle and sacrifices, protest songs and paintings,” said Pradyut Bordoloi, Chairman of the Congress Campaign Committee.
The announcement was made during the Axom Basaon Ahok (Let's Save Assam) campaign, which the Opposition party launched recently as part of its drive against the ruling BJP and its allies. Congress stitched a "grand alliance" with AIUDF and left parties with a target to wrest power in the elections slated for April.
This comes days after the party leader Rahul Gandhi announced that Congress, in no circumstances, would allow the implementation of the CAA in Assam.
The party says the CAA violates Assam Accord of 1985, which promised to detect and deport the foreigners with March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date.
Congress Manifesto Committee Chairman and Lok Sabha member, Gaurav Gogoi said, "We are fighting against the CAA as people of Assam does not want it."
Congress divided
Some leaders of the party, particularly those belonging to Bengali Hindu community from Barak Valley (South Assam), however, are in favour of the CAA as they bank on the votes of Hindu Bengalis, who are influential in the region. Hindu Bengalis, who missed the NRC are likely to be benefitted from the CAA.
Making her displeasure over the party's stand against the CAA public, former MP from Silchar (South Assam), Sushmita Dev did not join the anti-CAA tirade Rahul Gandhi took during a rally in Assamese-dominated Sivasagar district on February 14.
They believe that the anti-CAA stand would harm Congress in Barak Valley.
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