Guwahati: “There are efforts within and outside to topple the United Opposition in Assam. But whoever is committed to nation and constitution, who are committed to democracy, they will keep the opposition alive and strengthen it,” Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Bhupen Kumar Bora said hours after two senior Congress leaders joined the saffron party on Saturday.
More than 150 leaders and workers of the Congress-led 15-party United Opposition Forum joined the BJP in a mass joining programme at its party office here on Saturday.
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The prominent leaders who joined the saffron party are the former president of Nagaon District Congress Committee Suresh Borah, Assam Pradesh Youth Congress working president Pratyush Roy, Assam Trinamool Congress media cell chairman Dilip Kumar Sarma, TMC City Committee general secretary Smritirekha Hazarika and councillor of Goalpara Municipality Board, Dhanjib Rabha.
“We will fight from all 14 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming election. We will show a good performance. We will win Nagaon also,” Bora said.
“Suresh Bora submitted a resignation letter. He resigned from primary membership. Earlier, he told me that he had been facing a financial crisis as he had lost three consecutive elections. He never gave me any other complaint,” Borah said.
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“Joining and leaving is a usual process. Many people from us joined the BJP and some from BJP also joined us. But people of Assam know why BJP is trying to play with such joining programme,” he said.
“The promises they made before the election could not be fulfilled. Granting ST status to six communities, hiking tea workers’ wages, making Assam corruption-free, and implementing clauses 5 and 6 of the Assam Accord — all these are unfulfilled electoral promises of the BJP. They are now trying to divert the attention of the people from these issues, they are playing such dramas. But they have to keep in mind that we are reaching out to people through our programmes like change-change, bagane-bagane, pahare-pahare, chare-chare exposing the real pace of development of BJP. And people now understand it,” Bora also said.
“We don’t say that there is no loss of party after Suresh Bora’s joining BJP. Two of our presidents have also joined the BJP. Four ministers, including the chief minister, were from the Congress party. Many leaders of Congress are with the BJP now. But we are not stumbled. Our party is still strong. Many people are joining us,” he said.
“They are trying to confuse people. They are trying to attack Congress internally and trying to polarize the voters before the election, They are creating beneficiaries and using media as a tool to win the elections,” he also said.
Referring to Suresh Bora, the APCC chief said, “I am told by the journalist that Suresh Borah has got Rs. 12 crore contract works. But I don’t know how much it is true. They also told me that both are facing financial crises and the chief minister promised them to help. If they are in crisis and somebody is helping them, why we will be bothered, he questioned.
“Both Congress and BJP have some internal problems. You know what Rajen Gohain, Prbindra Deka, and Ashok Sarma are doing in BJP. Some of our leaders are also doing the same. These are the party’s internal matters. Naba Talukdar wanted to leave DCC president because of personal dissatisfaction. I talked to him today. He promised me that he would work for the party with a good spirit,” he said.
“BJP is afraid of our popularity. When I joined as president of APCC, nobody visited Rajiv Bhawan. Only 20 to 30 people gathered when I visited villages. Now you see how many people gathered at Congress meetings. 700 people joined Congress in CEM Tuliram Ronghang’s constituency in Karbi Anglong. BJP leader, vice chairman, and BPF leader joined us. Gana Shakti leader also joined us,” Borah said
As regards to Ripun Bora, the APCC chief said he had left the party but he did not deviate from the ideologies. “he is now in a party which is our alliance partner,” he said.
Regarding the beneficiaries, the APCC president said: “All women get Rs. 200 only under the Orunodoi scheme, but there is only one woman who could get Rs. 10 crore as subsidy, even as she did not receive it.”