BJP accuses Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi of sacrificing Assam interest

GUWAHATI: While BJP has alleged that Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has sacrified the interest of the state in the Indo-Bangladesh land swap deal, the Congress is pulling out all stops to defend the chief minister. The party will organise a massive rally on September 24 to prove its point.

BJP national spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy, who was here on Thursday, alleged Gogoi has overlooked the state’s interest. “He chose to ignore the people’s sentiments and followed the diktats of the Congress bosses.”

Rudy said even the Prime Minister did not hold any consultation. He contested Gogoi’s claim that not an inch of state land was given to Bangladesh. Visiting BJP teams have collected official documents from people in border areas that prove that land has been left to Bangladesh.

A three-member BJP delegation is visiting border areas in Assam and North Bengal and will submit a report at the party’s national executive on September 30 and October 1.

BJP also attacked the chief minister for not taking up issues of infiltration and deportation. Gogoi argued Assam got 1240 acres in the land negotiations. Bangladesh National Party (BNP) leader Begum Khaleda Zia is opposing the land deal. Gogoi said those opposing the deal in India are actually supporting Khaleda Zia. Gogoi added that Bangladesh has agreed on an optical fibre cable (OFC) network from Cox Bazar in Bangladesh to Guwahati in Assam.

The 450-km-long network will help the North East emerge as an additional source of bandwidth supply in India. The state government has impressed upon the telecom ministry to provide international connectivity through the Sea-ME-We-4 (South East Asia Middle East Western Europe 4) dropping at Cox Bazar.

Meanwhile, the Congress will organise a massive rally in Guwahati to counter Opposition claim that Assam’s interest has been sacrificed and this arrangement has been made to enable Gogoi get the Vice-President post.