GUWAHATI, Nov 14 - Accusing the Congress party of using black money to sponsor various organisations to oppose the government, the ruling BJP today cautioned people against acting impulsively by citing the example of the Assam Agitation.
Addressing the media here today, State BJP spokesperson Jayanta Mallah Baruah said that the cut-off date for detection and deportation of foreigners in all States, barring Assam, is 1951.
He said that people of Assam undertook the six-year-long Assam Agitation and made countless sacrifices, with 855 persons being martyred during the period, but the cut-off date for detection and deportation of illegal immigrants as per the historic Assam Accord is 1971.
�One could understand if the cut-off date had been made 1941 instead of 1951. But to have the cut-off date put off by another 20 years to 1971, and that also after making such huge sacrifices� If there had been no Assam Agitation, maybe 1951 could have remained the cut-off date for Assam as well,� he said.
He said that this kind of things happen when people act impulsively or by getting swayed by emotions and sentiments.
Asked if that means the BJP believes the Assam Agitation was not correct, Baruah said, �We are not saying that. We will follow the Assam Accord in letter and spirit.�
He said the BJP had supported the agitation and the party is for full implementation of the Assam Accord.
�What I am saying is that if one acts impulsively and with mere emotions such things happen. That�s the reality. We are not against the Assam Accord,� Baruah said. He said BJP is committed to the protection of the indigenous people of Assam and added that at present, minorities of East Bengal origin have started playing a major role in the State�s politics.
�If that reality is not grasped, then the day is not far when Badruddin Ajmal will become the Chief Minister of Assam and it will become difficult to prevent such an outcome. But attempts are being made to play with the sentiments and emotions of the local people by saying that there is a threat to their language, culture and literature,� he added.
Baruah said that even during the 1985 Assembly elections, the AGP �supported by all indigenous communities had failed to secure 64 or 65 seats. That is the reality of Assam�s demography. The BJP is aware of the demography of Assam. The BJP knows what kind of alliance is needed to govern Assam. And we have formed such a rainbow coalition. The BJP is doing that and working for the people of Assam. We are working for the interests of the indigenous people.�
He said that the BJP will never allow Assam to become a second Tripura. �But we will fight any attempt to convert Assam into a second Kashmir,� Baruah said.
He said that if anybody has objection with the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, such individuals or organisations can approach the Supreme Court and file a case against the proposed legislation rather than �provoking people to hit the streets and launch agitations by spreading misinformation�.
Baruah said that the apex court has played the biggest role in rolling out the NRC update process as well as in striking down the IM(DT) Act, based on litigations by some individuals or organisations.
�India was partitioned on the basis of religion. That is a fact. Even Congress leaders of those days had recognised the need to provide shelter to the persecuted Hindus of neighbouring countries... The Citizenship Act of 1955 states that such people can apply for citizenship after having spent 11 years in India as refugees, while the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, has reduced the waiting period to six years. That is the only difference. And yet some forces are trying to incite the people by spreading false information,� he said.
He added that a �blueprint� has been prepared by some forces to divert the attention of people of Assam. �The issue of Hindu Bangladeshis has also been used to divert the attention of the people from the real problems in the State. The Congress, the AIUDF and some people having affection for minorities of East Bengal origin are trying to deliberately divert attention from the threat posed by rampant infiltration of Muslim immigrants into the State,� Baruah said.
He alleged that an �influential former minister of the Congress party, who is from the minority community� is behind this and that attempts are being made to influence the intellectuals and other segments of the State on the directions of that leader. �We will reveal his name at an appropriate time,� Baruah said.
When asked about what the BJP believes to be the main problem the State is facing, he said, �The main problem of Assam is that many jihadi outfits are working to turn the State into a second Kashmir... Earlier, the common impression of an illegal immigrant among us was that of a Muslim person of East Bengal origin with a lungi and beard. But now those people have got their names enrolled in the NRC. Instead, now an attempt is being made to stereotype a Hindu Bengali wearing a dhoti and kurta as a foreigner.�
He added, �The Congress party is using black money to give birth to and promote various outfits which are trying to provoke the people of Assam against the BJP. Who are these outfits? We had never heard their names earlier,� said the BJP leader.
Asked about the claims by the Central government that the fight against black money is being waged relentlessly, Baruah said, �The Congress party still has a lot of black money. This is the black money which their former ministers earned during their last 15 years of rule in Assam. Congress is now using that money to give birth to various organisations.�
Meanwhile, the ruling party today released its second list of candidates for the forthcoming panchayat polls, comprising names of its nominees for 37 Zilla Parishad (ZP) seats.
