A section of people alleges that with the closure of a number of syndicates in the State the APCC has been incurring a huge loss, that too, ahead of the Assembly elections in 2016. At the diktat of the APCC, sources allege, APYC members are out to raise funds for the forthcoming Assembly elections in the State.
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, May 27: Are the members of the Assam Pradesh Youth Congress (APYC) a goon squad in a crash course in looting and extortion? A section of people in the state raise such questions as the Youth Congress members are the ones in the state who can go scot-free after committing crimes. Their parents body, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), is also blamed for not disciplining its youth wing for reasons best known to it.
Allegations against APYC members collecting goonda tax, running syndicates etc., are always there. However, of late, there is a sharp rise in reports of APYC youths committing crimes and the police not being able to control them, mainly due to political pressure. There are allegations that the APYC members, who had demanded a huge amount of money from the owner of Hotel Nezone in the Gorchuk area in Guwahati on the pretext of opening the hotel locked by the district administration, could not be arrested by the police as yet. A case was registered in Gorchuk police station in this connection. What the police say is that the accused have since been absconding. Smelling at rat, circles concerned, however, say that the police cannot act against the APYC members due to political pressure, thanks to the government at Dispur and the leaders at Rajiv Bhavan.
In yet another incident, APYC's Dibrugarh Lok Sabha Committee president Taranga Gogoi demanded lakhs of rupees from a businessmen two days back with the threat of dire consequences if the demand was not met. The police arrested the youth only to set him free on bail. Allegations are that the police cannot do anything against APYC members on their own due to pressure from Rajiv Bhavan and Dispur.
In yet another incident, Golaghat district Youth Congress secretary Tapan Rabha beat up the worker of a hotel badly at Golaghat recently. An FIR has been lodged, but the Youth Congress leader could be arrested as yet. Taking the current trend into account, sources allege that the accused can never be arrested by the police as they do not dare arrest an APYC youth by going against the wishes of political leaders.
A section of people, on the other hand, alleges that with the closure of a number of syndicates in the State the APCC has been incurring a huge loss, that too, ahead of the Assembly elections in 2016. At the diktat of the APCC, sources allege, APYC members are out to raise funds for the forthcoming Assembly elections in the State.