People will see 'new India' after LS polls: Gaurav Gogoi

Deputy Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, on Wednesday, 13 March asserted that the people of the country will see a "new India" after the general elections.

Visiting the Assam Congress headquarters here after being nominated as candidate for Jorhat constituency, Gogoi also slammed the BJP-led government over the timing of implementing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, saying it has been done to divert public attention from the Supreme Court's verdict on electoral bonds.

"After the 2024 polls, people of the country will see a new India where democracy thrives, institutions are again autonomous and the rule of law, not the rule of BJP or the rule of RSS, but the rule of law will be uniform for all," he told reporters here.

Gogoi has moved out from his Kaliabor constituency and will contest from Jorhat in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, according to the party announcement on Tuesday.

On the CAA, the Congress leader said, "Right now, the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is the burning issue. Because in the case of Assam, we have a special relationship with the Assam Accord, which establishes the cut-off year as 1971 for those who want citizenship."

According to the Assam Accord, names of all foreigners coming to Assam on or after March 25, 1971 would be detected, deleted from electoral rolls and steps would be taken to deport them.

"The Citizenship (Amendment) Act violates the Assam Accord and extends the year up to 2014. We find absolutely no meaning or logic in the government's reasoning.

"Suffice to say the only attempt of the BJP is to divert the attention of the public from the verdict of the Supreme Court on SBI and electoral bonds," Gogoi said.

He also charged the BJP with sowing the "seeds of anger, frustration and discord" between two communities in Manipur, and said CAA was introduced to deviate attention from that too.

"I feel there was the same malicious attempt. They don't want to actually help any refugee. But they only want to divide Assam on the basis of language and culture, which we will not allow to happen," Gogoi said.

He claimed that in the backdrop of rising inflation and high unemployment, especially in Assam, people wholeheartedly supported Rahul Gandhi's speech that the Assam chief minister is the most corrupt CM in the country.

"And I must say this chief minister is getting patronage from someone in Delhi. The fact that he is allowed to eat (sic) so much money and land means he is getting political protection from someone very powerful in Delhi.

"It's not the prime minister, who says 'na khaunga, na khane dunga'. I wonder who it is. I am sure people find out," Gogoi alleged.

Asked about the Congress candidate list for Assam, Gogoi expressed satisfaction and asserted that the party has put some of its best candidates in the fray, representing different verticals and sister organisations.

"I think we have put a fantastic list forward, balancing young and experienced. And of course, I would always hope more women get the chance, but it remained to be seen," he added.

On his candidature from Jorhat, Gogoi said the last time his family had contested the seat was in 1977.

"My home constituency is Kaliabor, where my father has been contesting since 1991. It was a stronghold of Congress and that's why BJP was so desperate that they had no option besides using the Election Commission to delimit the seat," he added.

Gogoi claimed that had Kaliabor continued to be a constituency like the last time, the BJP would never be able to take the seat away from Congress irrespective of their "money power, muscle power".

"In 2019, the margin had reduced compared to 2014. I am happy that the party has given me the responsibility of taking back Jorhat from the BJP. And today, we are going for an unprecedented and historic victory in Jorhat," he added.