GUWAHATI, Feb 2 - Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today said that eviction drive in the State would continue in the days to come, as the absence of it would set a precedent for the law-breakers to encroach on government land. �People must follow the law, and the State machinery must ensure maintenance of law and order so that all sections of society feel secure,� the Chief Minister said replying to a debate on the motion of thanks on the Governor�s address in the State Assembly today.
He said while the encroachers need to fear the law, the government would look after the rehabilitation of the genuine Indian citizens affected by the eviction drive, irrespective of their religious affiliations.
Taking a jibe at the Opposition, he wondered why the Opposition did not approach the judiciary if it indeed felt that genuine citizens would be affected by the eviction in Kaziranga and other places.
Specifying the four agendas of the State Government to make the State free from illegal foreigners, corruption, terrorism and pollution, he called upon the Opposition to shun its sceptical mentality and think above the party lines in the interests of the people of Assam.
�We are firm on completing the border sealing and work is going on on that front,� he said.
Stressing the need to weed out corruption from society and imbibe work culture, the Chief Minister compared his role to that of a sweeper working diligently to sanitise a locality.
�There is no difference between my role and that of a sweeper when it comes to keeping the society clean,� he said adding that due to the government�s strong stand against corruption, there has been a 17 per cent growth in tax collection during the first seven months of the present government.
Lauding the role of the State police in the recent Kokrajhar and Pengeree incidents, he said the government was planning a police academy at Dergaon in the lines of the Hyderabad police academy, with modern amenities and an ACS training institute at Umrangso.
Earlier, taking part in the debate, former Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi remarked that Sonowal is the luckiest Chief Minister of State as he did not have to take the reins when Assam had been reeling during the peak of insurgency and financial crisis. Gogoi also warned the present government about the recent spurt in terror activities in the State.
�The present government criticises us for leaving a burden of debts; but taking loans is a part of development process and nobody can avoid it. The projects being inaugurated these days, and taken up during our tenure, would not have been possible without taking such loans,� he asserted.
BJP MLA Padma Hazarika assured the House that all sections of people, including the religious minorities, were safe in the State and there would not be any discrimination on the basis of religion. He criticised the previous government for widespread corruption, even in constructing toilets for the poor.
Earlier, Aminul Islam of AIUDF, while referring to the eviction at Fuhuratoli of Sipajhar, said the eviction had been carried out in an inhumane manner leaving the affected people, including children and pregnant women, under the open sky in winter chill.
�Without the slightest consideration for the people and a humanitarian approach, how can the government vouch for good governance? This is not the trait of the government in a welfare State,� he stated.
