GUWAHATI, Dec 19 - The BJP�s attempt to corner the Congress on the issue of the Rafale deal created massive traffic snarls here today, causing immense hardship to the commuters.
Members of the ruling party took out a rally in the city to protest against what the saffron party termed as lies being spread by the Congress against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Rafale issue.
Hundreds of BJP cadres took part in the march which started from the Gopal Boro Higher Secondary School field and passed through the GS Road towards the Rajiv Bhawan, the State headquarters of the Congress party.
The BJP cadres, led by State unit president Ranjeet Kumar Dass, had planned a �Rajiv Bhawan gherao� programme.
They shouted slogans against the Congress during the march.
However, the protesters were prevented from marching beyond the Post Office point at GS Road by the police and the administration.
A large number of Congress workers had gathered outside the Rajiv Bhawan and there were apprehension of clashes if the protesters had been allowed to lay siege to the opposition party�s headquarters.
However, no untoward incidents were reported and the BJP cadres dispersed peacefully.
But, for the common people of the city, the protest proved to be a major distress as it led to massive traffic jams on GS Road for about three hours. Traffic congestion stretched for many kilometres and localities as far as Supermarket and Paltan Bazar were affected as the movement of traffic was severely hit.
Motorists and commuters had a tough time trying to navigate through the GS Road and many were stranded for a prolonged period. The after-effects continued till evening.
�This is not the way to conduct an agitation. After all, the BJP is the ruling party. If the ruling party behaves in this way and causes inconvenience to the public, what can we expect from other parties and organisations?� said Pankaj Sarma, a city resident.
His views were also echoed by Pranab Bayan, a small trader, who got stuck in the jam for over an hour.
�This kind of events only causes hardship to the common citizens. What kind of political point are they trying to make by harassing the masses like this? And they claim to fight for the rights of the masses,� he said.
The BJP, meanwhile, sent a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind via Deputy Commissioner of Kamrup Metro.
�Now, after the decision of the Supreme Court, it is very much clear that the Congress party and its president Rahul Gandhi has been using this issue (Rafale) only for the sake of their own narrow political benefits. This is a very serious matter that an elected representative of the country, who is also a president of a national party, is misleading the people of the country on the basis of inaccurate facts,� said the memorandum.
It added that Gandhi�s behaviour has been �insensitive to the security and safety of the country and they appear anti-national (sic)�.
�We demand that in the interest of national security and the international image of the country Rahul Gandhi should be removed from his position of public servant ...� stated the memorandum.
It is noteworthy that the ruling party has accused Congress president Rahul Gandhi of spreading falsehoods regarding the Rafale deal and added that the Supreme Court�s recent verdict proves that the deal was transparent.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during a press conference in Guwahati on Monday, had demanded a public apology from Gandhi for �knowingly misleading the people� and �playing with an issue related to national security� on the Rafale issue.
