Assam, Feb 14: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will visit Assam on Sunday to take stock of the party’s preparedness for the assembly polls in the state and also kick off its electoral campaign. Assam was under Congress rule for more than a decade until late chief minister Tarun Gogoi lost the elections to Sarabananda Sonowal in 2016 which saw the beginning of Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) rule in Assam.
Gandhi will start his campaign from Shiv Sagar by addressing a rally there. This will be the Wayanad MP’s first visit to the poll-bound state in 2021. Congress had earlier stated its intention to form a coalition with all parties who are against the BJP-led government in the state and said that all doors are open for like-minded parties to form a coalition with the Congress.
Ripun Bora, Assam Congress president and Rajya Sabha MP, said that Congress will form an alliance with five other parties to challenge the BJP. “In upcoming Assam Assembly polls, Congress, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), Communist Party of India (CPI), CPI (Marxist), CPI (Marxist-Leninist) and Anchalik Gana Morcha will fight together to oust BJP. We will keep our doors open for other regional and anti-BJP parties to join us,” Bora said in media.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah on several occasions have attacked Congress and said that the party failed to alleviate the concerns of the people of the region and did not help in its development. PM Modi had visited the state last week to launch the Assam Mala scheme which seeks to upgrade state highways and build medical infrastructure. He had also laid foundations for two medical colleges during his visit. This was the Prime Minister’s second visit to the Assam in the last two months.
During his visit, PM Modi claimed the quality healthcare was made accessible to the Assamese people under the leadership of chief minister Sarabananda Sonowal. He said, “Five years ago, having good hospitals in the state was a dream and people hoped that there would be no medical emergency in the family as it meant long hours of travel, waiting and countless difficulties along the way. But now you can see and feel the difference.”
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Meanwhile, home minister Amit Shah attacked the Congress and All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) saying these parties will allow infiltrators to enter Assam which will affect the state’s prospects. Shah during a rally in Nalbari in January had said, “Can Congress and Badruddin Ajmal keep Assam free from infiltration? If they come to power, they will open all gates to welcome them, because it is their vote bank.”
He further added the state is not safe in the hands of the Congress.
The elections for the 126-seat Assam legislative assembly is likely to take place in April-May this year. The schedule for the elections is yet to be announced by the Election Commission.
