Gogoi's damage control exercise falls flat

Ministry expansion move fuels more dissidence within Congress

BY OUR STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, Sept 15: Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi’s damage control exercise following Himanta Biswa Sarma’s departure to the BJP, seems to have come a cropper despite his move to expand his ministry. In fact, another round of dissidence in the Congress appears to be brewing after Gogoi inducted as many as 13 parliamentary secretaries on Monday.

The inclusion of controversial Borkhola MLA Rumi th as parliamentary secretary in the expansion announced yesterday, has invited criticism from a section of MLAs from the ruling party itself. Quite a few Congress leaders and MLAs are also said to be restive about the likely inclusion of Barak Valley leaders Siddique Ahmed and Gautam Roy. It may be mentioned that Ahmed was sacked for accompanying Himanta Biswa Sarma to Raj Bhawan when the latter tendered his resigtion from ministership, while Roy was sacked for the miserable performance of the Congress in his constituency during the last Lok Sabha elections. Now following reports of their imminent re-inclusion in the cabinet, questions are being raised by some party MLAs about the policies of the Congress.

East Guwahati MLA Captain Robin Bordoloi is one of the leaders who have openly criticized the Chief Minister for his choices. Alleging that he is a victim of discrimition, Bordoloi on Tuesday said, “Congress is now a lobby-centric party. I’m now a nobody in the party as I don’t have any lobby nor do I practice appeasement politics to secure a berth.”

Taking a pot shot at the Chief Minister, Bordoloi said, “The Chief Minister has now fallen blindly in love with the Barak Valley. He is giving responsibilities to controversial MLAs who went to jail for illegal activities. I am uble to understand the reason behind it.”

He added, “The King is doing whatever he feels like doing. The party too is nowhere to be seen to acknowledge the hard work of workers like us.”

When asked if he will join another political party, Bordoloi, hinting at his readiness to abandon the Congress, said, “If someone approaches me, I will definitely think over it.”

After the nearly two-and-half year old dissidence led by Himanta Biswa Sarma, yet another round of dissidence seems to be raising its head within the Congress. The picture may be hazy at present, but the road ahead does not appear smooth for Tarun Gogoi.

Top Headlines

No stories found.
Sentinel Assam
www.sentinelassam.com