Congress misleading citizens on service fees: BJP

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The state BJP has criticized the opposition parties and alleged that the opposition party misguided the citizens regarding the service fees, which have been revised by the Assam government.

The state BJP said that this service fee is citizen-centric and will be paid through the Assam Police’s citizen service portal, ‘Assam Police Sewa Setu’. And for every service, there will be a fixed service rate that is not levied as tax, but the opposition is trying to mislead the citizens by conspiratorially saying it is a massive increase in tax in the name of the citizens’ service. Addressing the media, state BJP chief spokesperson Manoj Baruah said APCC leaders Bhupen Borah and Debabrata Saikia and opposition party leaders have misguided the citizens regarding the service fees. Manoj Baruah also said that Debabrata Saikia said that if Congress comes into power in 2026, then they will return all the fees collected in the name of citizens’ service.

Baruah said that “Congress, even after staying in power for six decades, did not have any major role in saving the state’s art and culture. And now, being an opposition party, they remembered the art and culture of the state. In contrast to this, when the BJP came to power, it gave financial assistance to the Naamghars and Xatras, which are the cultural hubs of the state. Also, under Himanta Biswa Sarma, Bihu got a name in the global context.”

Baruah further stated that the Congress said that the BJP government, which provided Rs 1.5 lakh to all the Bihu committees, is now asking for Rs 300 as a service fee in a way to alleviate the financial crisis of the state, which makes the allegation ridiculous. Baruah further said, “When Congress was in power, they installed illegal check gates across the state. Through these check gates, they illegally collected money, so Congress talking regarding the economic stature of the state is not decent enough.”

State BJP spokesperson and MLA Diganta Kalita said, “Debabrata Saikia and Bhupen Borah are spreading false claims regarding the Assam Right to Public Service ordinance. For the benefit of the public, new directives are being imposed based on the ordinance. This act was amended in 2012 and 2019. In 2023, a new policy will also be introduced based on the act. As per the new policy, e-complaints, online FIRs, and 26 other services are included. Earlier, the Bihu committee had to visit the DC office and police station to ask for permission for 3 to 4 days to organize Bihu, which was a waste of time and money. But now, the committee can easily get online permission to organise any functions. This ordinance has been introduced keeping in mind the benefits of the citizens so that they can avail of the services easily and in time. This service has already been introduced in various states like Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and others.”

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