Guwahati: In a scathing indictment of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Assam government, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President Gaurav Gogoi has accused Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of functioning as a “real estate broker” and facilitating the large-scale transfer of land to industrialists from outside the state. The allegations, made at a media interaction on Tuesday, have intensified the political discourse in the state, bringing land rights and the plight of marginalised communities to the forefront.
Gogoi asserted that the Congress party in Assam is committed to fighting for justice for every citizen enduring what he described as a “regime of fear and terror”. He specifically highlighted the alleged systematic persecution of tribal communities and minorities through displacement and “unjust land policies.” The APCC President claimed that approximately 17,000 acres of land have been handed over to non-local industrialists without obtaining the consent or confidence of the local communities. “The Chief Minister and his colleagues are dispossessing the poor and marginalized. This government is functioning more like a real estate syndicate than a public administration,” Gogoi stated, painting a grim picture of the current administration’s priorities.
In a move to galvanise public support and reinforce the party’s stance, Gogoi announced that top Congress leadership, including AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, are slated to visit Assam shortly. Their visit, he emphasised, is aimed at sending a strong message against intimidation and reassuring the populace, with Gogoi reiterating, “There is no need to fear.” The Congress maintains that it will relentlessly pursue the fight to protect the “self-respect, dignity, and land rights” of the people of Assam, vowing to stand firm against what it terms the “corrupt and cruel policies” of the ruling dispensation.
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