Bhupen Borah slams Assam CM's 'lungi' remark, asks BJP to adopt 'Godse's gun' as party symbol

In a fiery exchange of political barbs, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President Bhupen Borah has lashed out at Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma over his recent comment suggesting that the Congress party should replace its traditional hand symbol with a 'lungi'. 

Borah retorted by suggesting that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should consider adopting the gun used by Nathuram Godse, Mahatma Gandhi's assassin, as their party symbol.​

Addressing the media, Borah criticised Sarma's remarks as disrespectful and unbecoming of a leader occupying a position once held by Bharat Ratna Gopinath Bordoloi. He emphasised that the Congress party had been instrumental in Sarma's political rise, questioning the Chief Minister's apparent forgetfulness of his roots.​

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Borah highlighted the inclusive nature of the Congress party, stating, "For us, lungi, dhoti, pyjama – all are equal. I wear all of them. Our perspective is inclusive." He condemned the politicisation of traditional attire and criticised the BJP's attempts to dictate the Congress's symbols and identity.​

Taking a sharp dig at the BJP's ideological roots, Borah remarked, "If BJP can dictate our party symbol, then by that logic, the gun with which Nathuram Godse assassinated Mahatma Gandhi should be the BJP’s symbol. BJP-RSS politics began with Godse’s bullet." ​

The exchange underscores the escalating tensions between the Congress and the BJP in Assam, reflecting the broader national political discourse.