Rahul Gandhi visits Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday visited the famous Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati as he began his two-day visit to poll-bound Assam.
Speaking to reporters later, Rahul said that unlike the BJP his party keeps the promises made to the people during the elections. He said that in Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka his party had promised to waive farm loans and did it after assuming power.
"Congress has given five guarantees to the voters of Assam. We are not the BJP. We fulfil our promises," he said, adding that "we have guaranteed to raise the tea garden workers' daily wage to Rs 365," he said, referring to one of the five promises".
The Congress has promised in its 'guarantees' that it will not allow the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to be implemented in Assam, provide employment to five lakh youths, provide 200 units of free electricity per month to all households, give monthly assistance of Rs 2,000 to every housewife, besides raising the minimum daily wages of tea garden workers.
Rahul, who was supposed to campaign in Assam on Tuesday, could not reach there due to bad weather and instead released a video appealing the voters to exercise their franchise in favour of the 'Mahajot' (Grand Alliance).
"Due to bad weather I could not reach you, but my message is clear that with the 'five guarantees', we will take Assam to the path of development and prosperity. So vote for the Mahajot with huge majority," he said.
Meanwhile, the Congress has written to Assam’s chief election commissioner seeking filing of an FIR against BJP leader and state minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The party also sought a blanket ban on Sarma’s campaigning for the rest of the election. The grand old party has claimed that Sarma had on March 29 made blatant and vicious threats against Bodoland People's Front (BPF) chairperson Hagrama Mohilary. The BPF is Congress' ally.
Elections to 39 constituencies will be held in the second phase on Thursday, and 40 seats in the final phase on April 6. An estimated 79.97 per cent of the total 81.09 lakh voters had exercised their franchise in 47 assembly constituencies during the first phase of polling in Assam on March 27.
