APCC cries foul, stages silent protest
By our Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI, Dec 5: The Congress in Assam cried foul and staged a silent protest today. The leaders and cadres of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) staged a silent protest at Gandhi Mandap in the city today against the alleged derogatory remarks made against Father of the tion Mahatma Gandhi and the first Prime Minister of India Jawharlal Nehru by a sanyashi of Bharat Sebashram at Gandhi Bhawan at Silclher yesterday. The programme was organized by Hindu Sanghati.
The protest was led by Opposition Leader of Assam Legislative Assembly Debabrata Saikia. The protest was participated, among others, by former minister Sarat Barkataty, former minister Rakibul Hussain, MLAs zrul Islam and Wazed Ali. The protestors held placards that read – the enemies of Gandhiji are enemies of civilization, put an end to violence and intolerance, we won’t let insult to Mahatma Gandhi who is the conscience of world civilization – etc.
Talking to the gathering, Saikia said: “Gandhiji had to be imprisoned for six years, ten months and three days in total during the struggle for independence of India. Terming such a person as the main cause of problems in India by Swami Partha Maharaj of Bharat Sebashram is an insult to the people of the tion as a whole. The Maharaj also termed Gandhiji as Dhritarashtra and Nehruji as Duryadhan. This is an attempt to distort Indian history and rewrite it afresh. The struggle led by Gandhiji, Nehruji, Patel and Azad against the British gave Indians their freedom. However, a commul politics is being hatched in the country to fragment the tion on commul lines.”
Speaking on the occasion, former minister Rakibul Hussain appealed to the government to take action against the self-styled Maharaj and punish him.
It is worth mentioning here that Debabrata Saikia lodged an FIR at Dispur police station yesterday against Swami Partha Maharaj for his ‘derogatory’ statement against Gandhii and Nehru. He sought an investigation against the Swami.
