Opportunist Congress forging alliances with communal forces — Nadda

Guwahati, March 22 (IANS): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President J.P.Nadda on Monday said that the Congress is doing politics of opportunism and destruction and its only objective is to win elections, instead of developing the state and the country.

Addressing three election rallies at Dibrugarh, Jorhat and Biswanath Chariali in northern and eastern Assam, the BJP chief said that the Congress is forging alliances with the Muslim League and fighting against Left parties in Kerala even as the party embraces both Left parties and Furfura Sharif (Indian Secular Front) in West Bengal.

“In Assam, the same Congress forged an electoral alliance with another communal force, the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF). It is doing opportunistic and destructive politics and the BJP is doing the development. The BJP governments at the Centre and the state have scripted a new chapter of development in Assam.”

The BJP leader said that the Congress is talking about Assam and its tea but using the photographs of Sri Lanka and Taiwan.

“The Congress has damaged Assam’s culture and never gave importance to security. During the Bodoland protests, thousands of civilians and security personnel were killed and kidnapped. But, with the surrender of over 2,000 militants, peace has been restored in Assam,” he pointed out.

Alleging that infiltration had increased during the governance of Congress, but the BJP government not only checked this but also electronically and digitally put up surveillance along the borders where the fencing could not be erected.

Nadda said that despite former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh representing Assam in Parliament, he did not sanctioned the pending gas royalty to Assam but Narendra Modi, within a week of becoming Prime Minister, sanctioned Assam’s due gas royalty to the tune of INR 8,000 crore.

He said: “To give the due rights and respect to indigenous people, the BJP government has already issued ‘Patta’ (land rights) to over 3.50 lakh people.” Modifying the British era forest act, will boost the bamboo-based industry and empower lakhs of artisans across the northeastern region, said Nadda.

“By making 7 lakh toilets in Assam out of 11 crore in the entire country, the BJP government not only made Assam an open-defecation-free state but also restored the respect of lakhs of rural women who used to defecate in open fields and prevent disease,” added the BJP President.

Nadda, accompanied by other party leaders, is scheduled to release BJP’s election manifesto for the upcoming Assembly elections in Assam on Tuesday.

Elections for the 126-seat Assam assembly would take place in three phases on March 27, April 1 and April 6.

The results will be announced on May 2.