Sonowal accuses Assam govt of failing to act against jihadis

PTI
GUWAHATI, NOVEMBER 7

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today accused the Tarun Gogoi government in Assam of failing to take strong action against jihadi and fundamentalist outfits despite intelligence inputs about their expansion in the state.
“Gogoi holds the Home portfolio since the last 13 years and from time to time he receives intelligence inputs about the expansion of fundamentalist outfits and their activities in the state. We are concerned at the state home department’s failure to take necessary action against them (outfits),” Sonowal told reporters here. “Jihadi activity is a serious problem in Assam and every citizen here is worried about it. People are not secure here. It is Gogoi’s responsibility to apprise the Central Government on the steps taken along the border to prevent movement of jihadi elements,” the Union Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship said.
Alleging that Assam is full of ‘illegal’ migrants, he said when they are present they become one of the bases for the jihadis.
“So Assam government has to stop it (entry of illegal migrants),” said Sonowal who was instrumental in getting the controversial Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act, 1983 scrapped by the Supreme Court.
State BJP president Sidhartha Bhattacharjee claimed that fundamentalists have increased their operations in Assam by setting up bases in its territory. The government should think of state’s and country’s security and take steps to uproot the outfits.
Bhattacharjee also accused the Tarun Gogoi government of not cooperating with the NDA government at the Centre, which, he said, is eager to solve the state’s problems.
“Example is when Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently came to Guwahati to discuss important issues with the Chief Minister, Gogoi did not attend the meeting for health reasons. But that same evening he attended the ISL football match here,” he added.