BJP seeks more time to banish 'land jehadis' from Assam

JAGIROAD: Union home minister Amit Shah today borrowed the word ‘guarantee’ from the Congress electioneering to promise that the BJP, if voted to power in Assam once again, will put an end to land jehad in next five years.

“Badruddin Ajmal has waged a land jehad in Assam. I guarantee you that after the next five years, not a single person waging land jehad will be seen in Assam,” Shah said addressing an election rally here today.

Claiming the BJP government has made Assam insurgency-free at a time when two oil company employees are still in ULFA (I) captivity and also agitation-free only a year after at least five persons lost their lives in police firing during anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests, Shah promised the BJP’s next task would be to make Assam infiltrators-free.

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“Ajmal is someone who had patronised influx and encroachment of satra land and Kaziranga National Park. His collusion with the Congress encouraged poaching,” the veteran BJP leader further said.

Ironically, the allegations came from the country’s home minister who should have indeed instituted probe to establish the truth of the allegations and punish Ajmal if he is guilty, instead of mudslinging at election meetings.

He also promising Scheduled Tribe status to six ethnic communities of the state, a promise the BJP government did not fulfill over the past five years.

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The senior BJP leader also took a dig at Congress’s alliance with the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) saying: “Rahul Baba says Badruddin Ajmal represents Assam’s identity. If Ajmal is the identity of Assam, who was Srimanta Sankardeva? Who was Srimanta Madhabdeva? Who was Bhupen Hazarika? Who was Lachit Borphukan?”

“If we make Ajmal the identity of Assam, then Assam will once again bear the brunt of influx and terrorism. So, we cannot let Ajmal become identity of Assam. Assam will always be identified by Srimanta Sankardeva, Srimanta Madhabdeva, Lachit Borphukan, Bhupen Hazarika et al,” he added.

Shah also reiterated commitment to make Assam flood-free by digging up lakes and ponds alongside the Brahmaputra to accommodate excess water and irrigate agricultural land.