NEW DELHI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said that there is a growing tendency among them opposition to prevent ‘natives Hindu MLAs‘ from speaking in the assembly.
The remarks were made while discussing the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024. Sarma condemned the opposition for disrupting the speech of his party’s MLA Bhuban Pegu.
“There is a new tendency in the House not to allow indigenous Hindu MLAs to speak. It is a dangerous trend. Please do not be aggressive. After our land, now do not try to take the House,” said Sarma.
The Pegu speech referred to historical assembly records of alleged migration and aggression from East Bengal and then to Assam.
“You can’t stop talking about the Hindu-Muslim issue. This is a hard fact of life. Even the census asks us to write down our religion,” the chief minister said.
Commenting on the bill, which was passed by the Assembly, Sarma described it as a battle for the survival of the Assamese people, who he claimed were “on the verge of extinction”. “Our land in Dhubri, Goalpara, Barpeta, Darrang, Nagaon, Morigaon has been lost. Now, we are struggling to survive,” he added.
The discussion escalated, leading Congress MLAs to stage a walkout in protest against Sarma’s statement.
Opposition parties of Assam have asked the president to remove the CM
A delegation from the United Opposition Forum, Assam (UOFA) sent a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu, demanding the dismissal of CM Sarma. They accused him of failing to maintain law and order and causing division among communities with his claims. The memorandum was handed over to the President through Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya at the Raj Bhavan. The delegation was led by Congress Lok Sabha MP Pardyut Bordoloi and UOFA general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi.
Opposition parties said that in the last two years, CM Sarma had made several provocative statements, including on the floor of the assembly, targeting the Muslim community. According to them, about a year ago, Sarma instigated certain youths to drive out religious minorities from Guwahati, who worked as vegetable vendors, rickshaw pullers, private drivers, and construction workers.
The memorandum also mentioned an incident where the Gauhati HC slammed the state government for demolishing the houses of a Muslim family in Batadrava, Nagaon district, using bulldozers. The court ordered compensation for the affected families.
“The chief minister tried to stoke communal frenzy by targeting the Muslim community, which led to attacks on some religious minorities in Sivasagar by BJP leaders and workers,” the opposition party said.
On the law and order issue, the opposition leader asserted that encountering deaths by the police was reported to be the highest in Assam according to the Center’s report presented in Parliament. They also claim that murders, dacoities, rapes, and murders have become common occurrences during the Sarma era.
In addition, UOFA pointed out significant security, saying that on Independence Day this year, the United Liberation Front of Assam (Independent), or ULFA(I), planted bombs in several locations. Police were unaware of the threat until the outfit was revealed via email.
The memorandum also provided statistics on sexual crimes, stating that during the BJP government from 2016-2023, 17,657 cases of rape were recorded according to government data. Furthermore, in the last seven months, 580 new cases of rape were reported, with 15 occurring in August this year.
“It is clear from the above facts that the Chief Minister has compromised his oath of office in the name of the Constitution, violated the Constitution by creating hatred and enmity between different communities with a series of provocative statements, failed to provide security to citizens’ lives and property and committed rampant corruption .”
Besides Bordoloi and Gogoi, the memorandum was signed by state Congress president Bhupen Borah, leader of opposition in state assembly Debabrata Saikia, Lok Sabha MP Rakibul Hussain, Isfaqur Rahman of CPI(M), Russel Dal of Raijor Dal, and others.
The remarks were made while discussing the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024. Sarma condemned the opposition for disrupting the speech of his party’s MLA Bhuban Pegu.
“There is a new tendency in the House not to allow indigenous Hindu MLAs to speak. It is a dangerous trend. Please do not be aggressive. After our land, now do not try to take the House,” said Sarma.
The Pegu speech referred to historical assembly records of alleged migration and aggression from East Bengal and then to Assam.
“You can’t stop talking about the Hindu-Muslim issue. This is a hard fact of life. Even the census asks us to write down our religion,” the chief minister said.
Commenting on the bill, which was passed by the Assembly, Sarma described it as a battle for the survival of the Assamese people, who he claimed were “on the verge of extinction”. “Our land in Dhubri, Goalpara, Barpeta, Darrang, Nagaon, Morigaon has been lost. Now, we are struggling to survive,” he added.
The discussion escalated, leading Congress MLAs to stage a walkout in protest against Sarma’s statement.
Opposition parties of Assam have asked the president to remove the CM
A delegation from the United Opposition Forum, Assam (UOFA) sent a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu, demanding the dismissal of CM Sarma. They accused him of failing to maintain law and order and causing division among communities with his claims. The memorandum was handed over to the President through Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya at the Raj Bhavan. The delegation was led by Congress Lok Sabha MP Pardyut Bordoloi and UOFA general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi.
Opposition parties said that in the last two years, CM Sarma had made several provocative statements, including on the floor of the assembly, targeting the Muslim community. According to them, about a year ago, Sarma instigated certain youths to drive out religious minorities from Guwahati, who worked as vegetable vendors, rickshaw pullers, private drivers, and construction workers.
The memorandum also mentioned an incident where the Gauhati HC slammed the state government for demolishing the houses of a Muslim family in Batadrava, Nagaon district, using bulldozers. The court ordered compensation for the affected families.
“The chief minister tried to stoke communal frenzy by targeting the Muslim community, which led to attacks on some religious minorities in Sivasagar by BJP leaders and workers,” the opposition party said.
On the law and order issue, the opposition leader asserted that encountering deaths by the police was reported to be the highest in Assam according to the Center’s report presented in Parliament. They also claim that murders, dacoities, rapes, and murders have become common occurrences during the Sarma era.
In addition, UOFA pointed out significant security, saying that on Independence Day this year, the United Liberation Front of Assam (Independent), or ULFA(I), planted bombs in several locations. Police were unaware of the threat until the outfit was revealed via email.
The memorandum also provided statistics on sexual crimes, stating that during the BJP government from 2016-2023, 17,657 cases of rape were recorded according to government data. Furthermore, in the last seven months, 580 new cases of rape were reported, with 15 occurring in August this year.
“It is clear from the above facts that the Chief Minister has compromised his oath of office in the name of the Constitution, violated the Constitution by creating hatred and enmity between different communities with a series of provocative statements, failed to provide security to citizens’ lives and property and committed rampant corruption .”
Besides Bordoloi and Gogoi, the memorandum was signed by state Congress president Bhupen Borah, leader of opposition in state assembly Debabrata Saikia, Lok Sabha MP Rakibul Hussain, Isfaqur Rahman of CPI(M), Russel Dal of Raijor Dal, and others.
