Congress Targets PM Narendra Modi over Northeast Visit

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Congress on Monday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his recent visit to the Northeast. Addressing a press conference at Rajiv Bhavan in Guwahati, Nagaon MP Pradyut Bordoloi alleged that the Prime Minister had shown “utter insensitivity” towards the people of Manipur by visiting the violence-hit state only once for two-and-a-half hours after two-and-a-half years of unrest.

Bordoloi pointed out that during this period of violence, the Prime Minister undertook as many as 39 foreign trips—including three visits to the United States, two to Russia, two to France, and three to the UAE—while “ignoring the burning crisis in Manipur.” He accused Modi of merely meeting a select few people inside closed doors during his brief Manipur trip, despite claiming to always give importance to the Northeast.

The Congress MP also criticized Modi for visiting Assam on September 13 to attend the centenary celebrations of Bharat Ratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika, instead of on Hazarika’s actual birth anniversary on September 8. He argued that Modi and the BJP’s ideology was fundamentally opposed to the universal, inclusive values that Hazarika represented.

Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia, who was also present at the press meet, echoed Bordoloi’s criticism. He said that Bhupen Hazarika’s philosophy was rooted in secularism, religious tolerance, humanity, and inclusivity—values that BJP and RSS “stand opposed to”. While acknowledging that Hazarika once contested elections as a BJP candidate, Saikia termed it a “mistake” of his life.

Saikia further accused the Assam government of “hijacking” the Bhupen Hazarika centenary celebrations that were originally planned by the Arunachal Pradesh government in association with the Bhupen Hazarika Foundation. He alleged that even though Hazarika’s only son attended the Guwahati event, the state government failed to even introduce him formally to the public.

Highlighting Congress’s contributions, the leaders noted that Hazarika was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Vibhushan and also served as Chairman of the Sangeet Natak Akademi during Congress governments. In Assam, he was conferred the state’s highest honour, “Asom Ratna”, by former Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

On the issue of infiltration, Saikia ridiculed Modi’s past comments that Bangladeshis would have to pack their bags and leave by May 16, 2014. “Even after 11 years in power, the BJP has completely failed to stop infiltration. Instead, they passed the CAA in 2019 to legalize foreigners until December 2024,” he said.

He also accused the BJP of betraying six ethnic communities by failing to grant them Scheduled Tribe (ST) status, despite repeated promises in their 2016 and 2021 election manifestos. The committee report submitted under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in 2020 was never acted upon, Saikia alleged.

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