Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said he will never implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act if voted to power in the state. The former Congress chief was addressing his first public rally in Assam ahead of the assembly elections due in March-April.
Accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and RSS of dividing Assam, Gandhi said his party will protect every principle of the Assam Accord. He said that the state needs its "own chief minister" who will listen to the voice of the people and not one who listens only to Nagpur and Delhi.
"The Assam Accord has brought peace and it is the protector of the state. I and my party workers will protect each principle of the Accord. There will not be a single deviation from it," he said in Sivasagar.
Gandhi said illegal immigration is an issue in Assam and that the people of the state have the capability to resolve the issue through dialogue. He further alleged that BJP and RSS are attempting to divide the state on the issue of Assam Accord.
"If Assam is divided, then Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union Home Minister Amit Shah will not be affected, but the people of Assam and the rest of India will be affected."
The Congress leader said that if his party comes to power in the state, the controversial CAA will not be implemented under any circumstance.
Party leaders, including Gandhi, were seen wearing 'Gamocha' (Assamese scarf), where symbolically the CAA word was crossed, giving a message against the controversial law.
At the rally, Gandhi said Assam needs a chief minister from their "own people" who will listen to their issues and try to resolve them.
"Remote control can operate a TV but not a CM. The current CM listens to Nagpur and Delhi. If Assam gets a CM like this again, it will not benefit the people. The youths need a CM who will give jobs to them," he said.
Attacking the prime minister, the Unione home minister and "businessmen close to them", Gandhi said: "I have devised a new slogan for Assam -- Hum do, humare do; Assam ke liye humare aur do, aur sab kuch loot lo." Gandhi alleged that natural resources and PSUs in the state are being "sold off" to two leading businessmen of the country.
The Congres leader accused the Modi government of "looting" public money during the COVID-19 pandemic and waiving huge amounts of loans of his "two businessmen friends". He said that the Congress government under the leadership of former chief minister Tarun Gogoi had brought peace to Assam by ending the era of violence.
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WATCH RAHUL GANDHI'S SPEECH IN SIVASAGAR
