Electioneering in Assam has taken an early spotlight, with the Congress dominating headlines through its Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, led by Rahul Gandhi. The yatra, which started from Manipur, reached Guwahati city on January 23.
The ruling BJP, however, is actively working to downplay the significance of the grand old party’s rally.
From denying permissions to enter market areas to withholding entry into religious shrines, politics is visibly pervasive. Political experts affiliated to certain parties are firing salvos at one another – some questioning the government’s moves and the others denouncing the entire yatra itself as a façade lacking any ground impact.
Congress leader Debabrata Saikia criticized the state government’s move to distribute forms for the registration of women self-help groups in Sivasagar and Jorhat districts on a single day – the day the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passed through the districts.
In a letter to the chief minister, Saikia wrote: “This is very much unjustified as due to various reasons all the women may not be able to register on the single day. I would request you kindly to extend the date of registration of women SHG members for at least fortnight or 10 days minimum in each block.”
But the move rather seemed to have benefitted the Congress as hundreds of women waiting in queues assembled to get a glimpse of Rahul Gandhi whose yatra transversed through the area. The women then sought to click pictures with him, which he readily agreed to. Gandhi spent some time with them and asked about their wellbeing, before proceeding further.
On January 22, political tensions escalated when Gandhi was denied entry at Bordowa Satra, the birthplace of 17th-century saint Srimanta Sankardev in Assam’s Nagaon district. The Satra management cited an expected surge in devotees due to the Ram Mandir event in Ayodhya, suggesting Gandhi to opt for an alternative date for the visit. In protest, Gandhi sat on a dharna on the road, singing ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram’.
भारत की सांस्कृतिक विविधता को शंकर देव जी ने भक्ति के माध्यम से एकता के सूत्र में पिरोया, लेकिन आज मुझे उन्हीं के स्थान पर माथा टेकने से रोका गया।
मैंने मंदिर के बाहर से ही भगवान को प्रणाम कर उनका आशीर्वाद लिया।
अमर्यादित सत्ता के विरुद्ध मर्यादा का यह संघर्ष हम आगे बढ़ाएंगे। pic.twitter.com/EjMS1hB6pG
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) January 22, 2024
Controversy also arose in Guwahati as Rahul Gandhi’s “proposed” visit to the Gauhati Press Club was canceled due to the administration not granting permission for his entry into the city. The police had asked the yatra to proceed to Jalukbari directly from Khanapara through NH 27, without entering the busy city streets. This led to clashes at Khanapara area on January 23.
Assam minister Pijush Hazarika said that there was no any official invitation from the Gauhati Press Club and hence permission was not given to enter the city. “If the Press Club had invited him, we would have let him pass down GS Road. However, there will be limited access to only 10 cars; we cannot enable 200 vehicles, including large buses, to enter the city,” the minister said.
Social media was abuzz with allegations and counter allegations – while the yatra kept getting eyeballs. A journalist working with a local television channel in Guwahati, trying to give his two cents on a good gathering of young students listening to Rahul Gandhi on January 22 on the outskirts of Guwahati city, said that the crowd attending the yatra in Meghalaya (the event was in Meghalaya) was much higher than in Assam because here the Congress party’s grassroot organization is weak.
When Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was quizzed about why Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to enter a temple in the state, he said: “Why are you talking of Ravan? At least talk about Ram today? After 500 years, today is a good day to talk about Ram. Today at least let us not talk of Ravan.”
प्रमाण सामने आ रहे हैं कि किस प्रकार से राहुल गांधी और जितेंद्र सिंह ने भीड़ को असम पुलिस के जवानों को मारने के लिए भड़काया।
हमारे जवान जनता के सेवक हैं, किसी शाही परिवार के नहीं।
निश्चिंत रहिए, क़ानून के हाथ बहुत लंबे होते हैं, आप तक जरूर पहुंचेंगे। pic.twitter.com/MqW1vyo73V
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) January 23, 2024
Minister Pijush Hazarika termed the yatra as ‘Anyay Yatra’ and said that the Congress party should apologize for the injustices committed during their regime in the state.
“The people of Assam deserve an apology from Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party for the injustices committed during the Congress regime. The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is merely a tourist attraction,” Hazarika said.
While it is to be seen how much the grassroots of the Congress party in the state are rejuvenated because of Rahul Gandhi’s rally, the reactions from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party indicate a staunch resistance to conceding any ground to the opposition. As the citizens await the formal declaration of Lok Sabha elections by the Election Commission, the political stage is already set with electioneering and spirited slapstick commentary. Enjoy the ringside view!
