Gaurav Gogoi questions Assam Police neutrality, slams BJP's violent protests

Jorhat, July 4: Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Gaurav Gogoi has called for an impartial investigation by the Assam Police into recent incidents of political violence, while drawing a sharp distinction between what he described as the Congress party’s democratic protests and the BJP’s “violent” methods.

Addressing reporters at Dergaon during a visit to a senior party worker’s residence, Gogoi questioned the neutrality of the Assam Police under the Home Ministry, which is directly overseen by Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma.

“The Assam Police must act in an impartial manner, irrespective of which political party is involved,” Gogoi said. “If action is taken swiftly against a bottle protestor, then why was there no similar action against those who attacked our Congress MPs and MLAs, or assaulted police personnel openly? People have seen this on camera.”

Referring to the recent bottle throw incident during the Chief Minister’s visit to Golaghat, Gogoi underlined the need to differentiate between democratic protests and violent agitation.

“The Congress party protests strongly but within democratic limits. The BJP, on the other hand, uses rods and lathis to smash car windows and physically attack elected representatives. This is the difference,” he asserted.

He further alleged that the double standards in the law enforcement response expose a larger issue. “There should be no bias. The Home Ministry cannot protect people who freely harm the police in full public view,” Gogoi added.

The Congress leader also raised serious questions about the corruption and large-scale land acquisition allegedly carried out by BJP ministers and legislators.

“Today, Assam runs on the ‘dangor mama, dangor mami, xoru mama, xoru mami’ model,” he quipped, pointing at what he claimed is a network of relatives benefiting from the misuse of public resources.

He singled out the Garukhuti land project as an example where public money has allegedly been siphoned off. Speaking on the alleged irregularities in the Garukhuti agricultural project in Darrang district, he said, “The Chief Minister claims there is no corruption, but the reality in Assam is the opposite. I have written to the PMO and urged him to look into these allegations himself. People now know how ministers and MLAs are looting public money." 

He also hit out at the BJP leadership for using narratives to cover up their failures and irregularities.

“When the head from Dispur is corrupt, what can you expect from the people under him?” Gogoi asked, adding that the Congress has deployed observer teams to every district to gather feedback from local people about these issues.

On coordination with other opposition forces, Gogoi mentioned that the Congress has shared information received through Trinamool Congress workers with the AICC leadership. “I believe the AICC will take appropriate steps based on these inputs,” he said.

Wrapping up his remarks, Gogoi reiterated his call for the Assam Police to remain neutral and not act as a tool for the ruling party.

“Law enforcement must serve the people, not protect those who misuse power. There must be a clear distinction between protests that are democratic and protests that turn violent, and the police must hold everyone equally accountable,” he added.

APCC president Gaurav Gogoi earlier sent a letter to the Prime Minister on June 28, calling for an immediate review on corruption and related matters in Assam.