Tarun Gogoi slams PM Narendra Modi, CM Sarbananda Sonowal

GUWAHATI: Former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has termed the Prime Minister's address to the nation as disappointing and a flop show.

In a statement sent to the press on July 1, Gogoi said the people of India wanted to know most important challenge of Chinese increasing incursion in Indian territory. People are keenly waiting to know about the action taken by Government of India to push back rapidly increasing incursion particularly in Ladakh area.

Gogoi said that the Prime Minister has miserably failed to contain the COVID-19 epidemic which was about 14,000 on the day of imposition of lockdown and today it is about six lakh and death toll is aproximately 17,000.

He also said that the Prime Minister failed on many other fronts, including checking unemployment, checking rise in prices, in diplomacy policy particularly with neighbouring Bangladesh, Nepal, Srilanka, Bhutan, Maldives drifting towards China is a matter of great concern.

On the Assam front, he said the State Cabinet's decision for easy conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural purpose without having obtained permission from Revenue department is a dangerous anti-indigenous decision and contrary to the BJP's safeguarding the interest of people by raising the slogan "Jati Mati Bheti". Nowhere in the country there is such blanket permission of conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural purpose even in the advanced industrial States.

"In the name of lockdown the BJP is playing politics by organizing political and government meetings thereby depriving other political parties. Even in my own Assembly constituency in Titabar three projects financed by Fourteenth Finance Commission, foundation stone have been laid by Sri Hemanta Kalita and Sri Kumud Kachari who have got no official authority and even without informing or inviting me as local MLA.

"The slogan of Sonowal Government that the Congress was neglecting Tea Garden communities, SC, ST, Backward communities and other development activities is another attempt to mislead the people of Assam," Gogoi said, and added, "I also want a white paper on the welfare projects and fund allocation for all these communities besides all autonomous councils and development councils. There is rampant corruption not only in coal, sand, sofari, stone syndicates but also in all the departments such rampant corruptions have been indulging."

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