'Inclining towards separatist process': Himanta Biswa Sarma flays Cong over Gupkar tie-up

Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday questioned the Congress party's leadership on whether it supported the restoration of Article 370 and Article 35A. Weighing in on Congress' alleged seat adjustments with the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration, he accused the party of "gradually inclining towards the separatist process". He accused Congress of "playing politics which is dangerous for the unity and integrity" of India. To buttress his point, Sarma alleged that NC president Farooq Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti had always adopted a hardline stance on Jammu and Kashmir. 

Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma remarked, "They (Gupkar alliance) have said that they will work for the restoration of Article 370 and 35A of the Constitution of India. Basically, it was the BJP government that took the bold stance to revoke Article 370 from the Constitution of India as well as it has also repealed Section 35A which deprived women of property rights and so forth. Now if you continuously see the statement of Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti right from 1974 when Farooq Abdullah visited Pakistan and met Amanatullah Khan and other separatist leaders, they have continuously taken a hardline stance on Kashmir."

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He added, "Is Congress in favour of bringing back Article 370? Is Congress supporting the restoration of Article 35A? So these are the questions Congress party has to answer to the people of India. Now, Congress role is dubious. One day, P Chidambaram will welcome it. The other day, Randeep Surjewala will say something else. The state party president is now saying that we have an alliance with the Gupkar gang at the district level."

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'Congress is supporting communal agenda'

On this occasion, the BJP leader also panned Congress' purported "communal agenda" in Assam. For instance, he pointed out that the state Pradesh Congress Committee had supported Badruddin Ajmal-led AIUDF and other party leaders whose tone is clearly communal in nature. Claiming that Congress had gone far away from the days of the freedom movement, he alleged that it has "forgotten the principle of nationalism and secularism". Moreover, he blamed the Sonia Gandhi-led party for seeking to disturb the peaceful atmosphere of Assam and J&K. 

The senior Assam Minister opined, "If you see, right from Kashmir to Assam, Congress is playing a dangerous game. In Assam, Congress is supporting the communal agenda from Badruddin Ajmal whether it is the question of the Miya flag, Miya culture, Pakistan Zindabad slogan. You will see that the Pradesh Congress Committee is openly endorsing the action of AIUDF and other Congress leaders whose tone and tenor is openly communal. Equally, in the case of Jammu and Kashmir, they have said that they are going to have an alliance with the Gupkar gang."

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