GUWAHATI, Aug 22 - The Asom Sangrami Mancha (ASM) on Saturday demanded immediate withdrawal of the Centre�s decision to hand over the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (LGBIA) to a private entity.
Mancha president Diganta Konwar and executive president Adip Kumar Phukan vehemently opposed the move of the Union government to hand over the airport to a private entity. They also criticised the State government over its stand on the issue.
In a statement the two leaders said it is an insult for Assam to hand over the airport named after Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi to a private entity. The Kerala government had written to the Prime Minister and also moved the High Court, seeking a stay on the move to lease out the Thiruvananthapuram international airport, the pointed out. They have demanded a similar initiative from the Assam government.
�The BJP-led government started handing over public enterprises to private entities,� the statement alleged.
It may be recalled that on Thursday, many employees of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) posted at the LGBIA in Guwahati, had staged a protest demonstration over the decision.
The employees, under a joint forum of unions and associations of AAI, staged the demonstration shouting slogans and wielding flags.
On Wednesday the Union Cabinet approved a proposal to lease out the Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram airports through a public-private partnership mode.
APCC protest: Meanwhile, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) will stage a protest demonstration on Monday against the decision of the Union government to hand over the LGBIA to a private entity.
