Himanta has secret understanding with Ajmal to defeat Cong in polls: Priyanka in Dhubri

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaMay 1, 2024

While alleging that a “mafia raj” was going on in Assam, Congress national general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday claimed that Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has a “secret understanding” with AIUDF chief Maulana Badruddin Ajmal just like BJP has with Assaduddin Owaisi in Telangana, aimed at defeating the Congress.

Addressing the Nyay Sankalp Rally in Dhubri, Gandhi urged the public to compare the CMs ruling Congress led states to the BJP ones and see for themselves that while Revanth Reddy et al are utilising their tenure to fulfil guarantees given by the congress, the likes of Himanta Biswa Sarma are busy running mafias that of supari, land etc. 

The Congress leader strongly condemned the BJP’s collusion with the regional parties like AIUDF when she clearly stated how the Assam CM had proclaimed that ‘they’ would vote wherever he asked them to, alluding cross voting during Rajya Sabha by Ajmal’s tribe. 

“Mafias are ruling Assam. When your CM was in the Congress party, there were serious allegations against him. All the charges against him were washed away as soon as he joined the BJP,” she alleged.

“Compare the CMs ruling Congress-led states to the BJP ones and see for themselves that while Revanth Reddy et al is utilising their tenure to fulfil guarantees given by the congress, the likes of Himanta Biswa Sarma are busy running mafias that of supari, land etc,” Gandhi said.

“It is their selfish gains alone that Modi, Himanta and Ajmal are concerned with and not your issues, which is why Modi wants his statue bigger than that of Mahanayak Lachit Barphukan, so he is getting it built by a local businessman,” she said.

With a high-pitched greeting of ‘Jai Aai Ahom’, invoking the spirit of Assam heroes Koch Rajbongshi and Lachit Barphukan, Priyanka spoke about a host of issues ranging from unemployment to inflation, crime against women, mafia rule, MSP, soil erosion, economic inequality, health challenges, collusion of BJP with several regional parties to mislead the public et al.  

“You (the people) have to understand the politics that is going on in the country today. Once upon a time, the media represented the people, power could be questioned. But today all institutions stand with one party, whether it is the media or the Election Commission,” she said.

“Today, all the ways to strengthen democracy and the Constitution are being closed. The BJP has developed a washing machine where corrupt people are put in and cleaned. This is the first thing they’ve done with your CM. Today, the country has the highest unemployment in 45 years, because the ministers in the government are all focused on their own interests,” she also said. 

Priyanka said: “Today, BJP leaders are talking about changing the Constitution. The Constitution gave you the power to vote, the Constitution gave you the right to equality, the Constitution protects your rights this is the Constitution, not the BJP, who will change this. This Constitution belongs to this country, it belongs to you. No one can change it.”

She said the Congress gave land leases to the poor, nationalized banks, brought the green revolution and white revolution, and gave MGNREGA, the right to fertilizer security. PM Modi cannot take such a name made by his BJP government.

“A BJP leader in Karnataka fled abroad after sexually assaulting thousands of women. PM Modi was asking for votes from a crowded stage for the same leader a few days ago. Wherever crimes against women have been committed in the country, whether it is Hathras, Unnao or Manipur, BJP leaders have been involved. The Modi government has been protecting only criminals,” she said.

“I met women in tea plantations, where they told me their problems. They are paid extremely low salaries, they demanded to increase in their salaries. The CMs here grab tea plantations, and run separate businesses, but do not increase their wages. Therefore, the Congress guarantees that your wages will be increased to Rs 400,” Priyanka said.

“The woman also takes responsibility for the household and also brings up the society. But the Modi government has done nothing to make women self-reliant. Modi said he has given reservations to women, but he does not know when that reservation will be implemented. Congress, on the other hand, has guaranteed 50% reservation for women in central government jobs and we will fulfil this guarantee,” Priyanka said.

She also expressed her concern for the striving parents who toil to impart good education to their children, thereby emphasising the Yuva Nyay that the Congress party guarantees through its manifesto via guarantees for  Right to Apprenticeship, Education loan waiver, 30 lakh jobs. 

Moving on, Priyanka substantially spoke of the challenges every woman faces on a day-to-day basis yet the BJP has only intensified their hardships, especially with the crime against women steeping upward during BJP’s tyrannical rule. 

She also added that PM Modi and Amit Shah have enabled Revanna to evade the country despite his heinous crime against thousands of women. Gandhi also revisited BJP’s history of crime against women as she cited Hatharas horror when she visited the 19-year-old victim’s family and shared their plight as her own daughter was 19th years old.

She took a jibe at the PM for the quid pro quo with corporates including the Serum Institute of India, falsely taking credit for the disclosure in an electoral bond scam. It is because of this loot through demonetisation and unconstitutional electoral bonds that the BJP has become the richest party world over, having lavish offices and paid manpower while the Congress workers dedicate themselves to nation-building for free. In that sense, Gandhi said, the Congress has certainly not achieved in ’70 years’ what the BJP did in 10 years.

 The rally was attended by Congress national general secretary Jitendra Singh, secretary Prithviraj Sathe, spokesperson Mahima Singh, Assam Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah, MP Gaurav Gogoi, opposition leader Debabrata Saikia, Congress candidate for Dhubri Rakibul Hussain, Assam Congress vice president Zakir Hussain Sikdar, MLAs Shibamani Bora, Wajid Ali Chaudhary, Rosalina Tirkey amongst many other stalwarts of the Congress.