Saikia smacks of cultural imperialism by RSS, BJP

GUWAHATI, Aug 5: Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly Debabrata Saikia has said that the ming all the model colleges to be set up in in the State after Deendayal Upaddhay is a cultural aggression by the RSS and the BJP.

In a statement issued to the press on Saturday, Saikia said that the announcement made by State Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma that all model colleges to be established in the State over the next four years would be med after Deendayal Upadhyaya was a stark declaration of ubashed cultural imperialism.

“Deendayal Upadhya took no part in the freedom struggle, nor did he believe in the concept of a multi-religious and multi-cultural India. Assam, on the other hand, has always been a shining example of ‘unity in diversity’. Therefore, Sarma is making a mockery of the Assamese ethos by foisting the me of a person associated with a divisive agenda upon centres of higher education in this state.”

Saikia further said: “If at all, Sarma and his party are sincere about protecting ‘jaati, maati, bheti’, then he should have med such model colleges after a legendary figure of Assam, of whom there are many, right from Swargadeo Sukapha or Srimanta Sankardev or Swahid Kushal Konwar or Anundoram Borooah or Lakshmith Bezboruah or Gopith Bordoloi or Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla or Dr. Bani Kanta Kakoty or First Assamese Lady Doctor Rajani Prova Saikia or First Assamese lady Graduate Sukalata Duwarah or first Assamese High Court Judge Holiram Deka or first Ph.D of Assam Dr. Moidul Islam Bora or Sri Sarat Chandra Singha or Dr. Bhupen Hazarika. If Assamese persons are not considered sufficiently important by the BJP, then Dr Sarma could have selected an intellectual with a global reputation such as Rabindrath Tagore or Dr Sarvapalli Radhakrishn. Unfortutely, all these giants lack the primary qualification sought by the Government of the day, which is that of having been a ‘sanghi’!” Meanwhile, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) staged a statewide protest against miscreants attacking AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi in Gujarat on Friday when he had gone to visit the flood-affected people in the State. The APCC also staged protest in front of Rajiv Bhawan in Guwahati. Hundreds of Congress leaders and workers took part in the protest. The APPC said that the attack on Gandhi in the home state of the Prime Minister is unfortute. 

Former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Debabrata Saikia, senior party leaders Sarat Barkataky, Pradyut Bordoloi and others were present in the protest.