Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Criticizes Minority Community’s Support for Congress in Lok Sabha Elections
News Mania Desk/ Agnibeena Ghosh/23rd June 2024
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted on Saturday that the Bangladesh-origin minority community in Assam largely voted for the Congress in the recent Lok Sabha elections, overlooking the developmental initiatives implemented by the BJP-led governments both at the Center and in the state. Sarma also alleged that this community is the only one in Assam engaging in communalism.
Addressing a felicitation event for the victorious candidates of the BJP and its allies at the party’s state headquarters, Sarma noted that the ruling coalition secured nearly 47 percent of the votes, while Congress and its allies received 39 percent. The BJP-AGP-UPPL alliance won 11 out of 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, leaving Congress with three seats.
“If we analyze the 39 percent votes of the Congress, they are not evenly distributed across the state. Half of these votes are concentrated in 21 minority-dominated assembly segments. In these areas, BJP received only 3 percent of the votes,” Sarma claimed.
“This indicates that Hindus do not engage in communalism. If there is any communalism in Assam, it is from one community and one religion alone,” the Chief Minister stated, without specifying any particular group. He remarked that despite lacking basic infrastructure like roads and electricity, these minority-dominated areas continued to vote predominantly for Congress.
Conversely, Sarma highlighted that although the BJP has been working for the benefit of Assamese people and tribals, these groups have not fully supported the party. “Except in Karimganj, in areas with a majority of Bangladesh-origin residents, 99 percent of votes went to Congress,” he stated.
“They might be living in houses provided by Prime Minister Modi and benefiting from electricity and sanitation facilities, but when it comes to voting, they choose Congress,” Sarma claimed.
He suggested that the Bangladesh-origin community supports Congress because they aim to “control the state in the next 10 years.” Sarma also alleged that members of this community attacked a police station in Lakhimpur, a village in Barpeta, and attempted to encroach on land in Kokrajhar during the period when the BJP government was inactive due to the Model Code of Conduct being in place. “When the BJP government is not in power, we can only imagine the extent of such attacks,” he added.
Sarma emphasized that the BJP and its allies had achieved a significant victory, winning 92 out of 126 assembly segments in the Lok Sabha elections, the highest ever for any ruling alliance in the state. “This time, we secured 47 percent of the votes. Our goal is to achieve 50 percent in the 2026 state polls,” he asserted.
The Chief Minister concluded by affirming that the BJP is committed to nation-building and will continue to work towards the development of all regions, regardless of whether their candidates won in those areas. This statement underscores the BJP’s resolve to prioritize development and inclusive growth across Assam.
