Guwahati: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday accused the Indian National Congress of trying to change Assam’s demography and said the BJP government has taken strong steps to stop infiltration and protect people’s rights.
Addressing a gathering in Cachar after launching the second phase of the Vibrant Village Programme (VVP-II), Shah alleged that earlier Congress governments had kept the borders open, allowing infiltrators to enter Assam.
“The Congress government had kept the country’s borders open, allowing infiltrators to enter. An attempt was made to alter the demographics of Assam by snatching away the jobs of Assam’s youth, the food grains of the poor, and the land of the villages,” he added.
Shah also claimed that after the BJP came to power in the state a decade ago, the first term focused on curbing infiltration, while in the second term the government led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma cleared large tracts of land allegedly encroached upon by infiltrators.
He appealed to voters to return the BJP to power for a third consecutive term, promising that every infiltrator who entered during the Congress regime would be sent back.
Highlighting governance achievements, the Union minister said Assam has witnessed significant progress under BJP rule and asserted that incidents such as bomb blasts have ceased.
"The government is also working towards making the state flood-free," he added.
Speaking on the Vibrant Village Programme-II, Shah said 334 blocks along the borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be developed under the second phase.
As per Shah, the initiative, driven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aims to bring border villages at par with other parts of the country.
“There was a time when border settlements were viewed as the country’s last villages, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi changed that thinking by declaring that every village on the frontier should be regarded as India’s first village,” Shah said.
His visit to Assam comes in the run-up to the state Assembly elections scheduled later this year.