HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, Feb 15: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday asserted that the ruling government’s performance has rendered the need for opposition irrelevant in the state.
Speaking to the media in Jorhat’s Lahdoigarh, Sarma also claimed that all Congress MLAs are eager to join the saffron camp, despite the BJP’s limited capacity to accommodate them.
Related Posts:
“There is no need for any opposition or Congress in the state when the ruling government is consistently delivering positive results,” Sarma emphasised.
However, the chief minister noted that in a democracy, if the ruling party engages in misconduct, the Opposition can strengthen and challenge them.
Predicting that all members of the Congress party would eventually transition to the BJP, Sarma said, “Many who are vocal in the press are the ones who will later join the BJP.”
Later, speaking on the Assam’s prevailing ‘chanda’ (donation) and ‘andolan’ (protest) culture, CM Sarma emphasised that progress in the state hinges on eliminating these practices.
“Assam will emerge as one of the most progressive states in the country only when we bid farewell to protest-driven governance and reliance on donations,” he stated.
Sarma further called upon the Congress to cease internal conflicts and redirect their focus towards the development of the state.
It is worth mentioning that two Congress MLAs — Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha and Basanta Das — have decided to “support the government” without leaving the grand old party now.
Purkayastha was the working president of the opposition party and Das was a minister in the Tarun Gogoi government.
As per Sarma, Purkayastha, who resigned as the Working President of Congress on Tuesday, and Das will continue to remain MLAs of the opposition party, but have lent “unconditional support” to the Government of Assam for working towards the people.
“We will support the government for all developmental works for our constituencies and Assam. However, I will remain a Congress MLA and work as a dedicated Congress worker,” the PTI had quoted Purkayastha as saying on Wednesday.
With Das by his side, he claimed that there is no other “intention or meaning” to this move other than welfare of the people.
Purkayastha, who has been in the Congress for several decades since his NSUI days, was elected from the Karimganj North constituency in Karimganj district during Assembly polls in 2021. Das won the Assembly polls from the Mangaldoi seat. (With inputs from PTI)
