Congress rally ’dampens’ for Bihu spirit

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, January 10: The Assam Pradesh Congress Party (APCC) and the Congress government at Dispur really got off on the wrong foot in their bid to expose the BJP’s ’deception’ to the people of Assam beginning today through the holding of the Pratara Birodhi Divas by remaining oblivious to the Bhogali Bihu spirit and sentiment of the people of the State. There are also allegations that the Tarun Gogoi–led Congress government in the State misused its administrative power for the Pratara Birodhi Divas of the APCC.

On the eve of the Bhogali Bihu, city bus services in Guwahati and long–distance bus services to and from Guwahati with other districts in the state were skeleton due to massive requisition of buses, in most of the cases, against the wishes of the bus owners. This being the run–up to the Bihu, no bus owner wants to keep his/her bus idle for the whole day for a political party’s programme. According to allegations, the bus owners had no way out but to succumb to the pressure tactics of the Congress–led government that engaged its enforcement inspectors for the requisition of the party programme. In jobs like this, nobody can outperform enforcement inspectors as they know how to make bus owners squeeze their purses. Over 100 buses, according to sources, were requisitioned from gaon district alone.

The outcome of such a move, however, is horrible. A large number of people, mostly government employees, had a harrowing time as the number of passenger buses plying were skeleton. Most of the government employees from Guwahati were on their way back home in other districts of the state like lbari, Barpeta, gaon etc., for Bihu. They, however, had a harrowing time when they failed to get buses at Adabari due to the heavy requisition for the Congress’ rally.

Like every other year, the run–up to the Bhogali Bihu is hectic for the people of every walk in the state. If the one who makes curd, laru and other Bihu delicacies is busy in buying or collecting raw materials, one who uses them is busy for marketing and shopping. They cannot think of going to far–off places for such activities as the number of buses plying was skeleton.