Rahul Gandhi on Sunday attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party squarely in the middle of a rally in Biswanath, Assam, claiming that it was creating hatred and splitting communities to gain political mileage. He urged the electorate to offer a change and stated that the Indian National Congress is a party of unity, inclusiveness and development.
In his speech to the assembly, Rahul Gandhi accused Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the BJP government of not keeping major promises made during the election and being involved in corrupt activities. He said that the leadership in the state has focused on divisive politics at the expense of governance and the populace.
Speaking about the rich cultural heritage of Assam, Gandhi mentioned such prominent leaders of Assam as Srimanta Sankardev, Gopinath Bordoloi, Bhupen Hazarika, Azan Pir, and Zubeen Garg and said that they were a symbol of unity and harmony, not a division. He claimed that the power of Assam was in its diversity and he referred to Assam as a bouquet of various peoples coexisting with each other in a state of mutual respect.
The leader of the congress also charged the state government with favouring the large industrial houses by granting them land in exchange of commissions claiming that they misused power and that the family members of large industrial houses were getting involved in corrupt practices. He also attacked BJP on grounds of not fulfilling key commitments such as the granting of Scheduled Tribe status to six communities, depositing 15 lakh in the bank accounts of citizens, and raising the wages of tea garden workers to 350 a day.
Returning to his party position, Gandhi declared that Congress believes in brotherhood and equitable development which, as he defined it, is not the case with BJP which is divisive in its politics.