GUWAHATI, June 5 - Leader of Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly Debabrata Saikia today said that the Congress is ready to offer �unconditional support� to an alternative government led by Sarbananda Sonowal if the Chief Minister leaves the BJP and takes a stand against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, for the sake of preserving the sanctity of the Assam Accord.
�People of Assam have come out on the streets against the Bill. Now the onus lies with the elected representatives. They cannot go against the will of the people. The BJP�s official line is to support the Bill. However, the proposed legislation goes against the provisions of the Assam Accord. As such, those people who believe in the sanctity of the Assam Accord should join hands to explore an alternative government,� Saikia told The Assam Tribune.
He said that some BJP MLAs have already come out publicly against the Bill.
�There are many leaders in both the BJP and the AGP who came into public life through the Assam agitation. So if people like Sarbananda Sonowal, Prafulla Kumar Mahanta and Atul Bora decide that they should do something for the interest of Assam and to preserve the Assam Accord by taking a firm stand against the Bill, then we are ready to offer them unconditional support and make up for the numbers in the Legislative Assembly for an alternative government,� Saikia said.
Asked if the Congress party would be willing to support a government headed by Sonowal in case the latter decides to leave the BJP over the issue of the Bill, Saikia replied in the affirmative.
�The public will appreciate such a step,� said Saikia, who is also Leader of the Congress Legislature Party.
In the 126-member Assam Legislative Assembly, the BJP has 61 MLAs, while its regional allies AGP and BPF have 14 and 12 legislators respectively. There are 25 Congress MLAs, 13 of the AIUDF and one Independent.
