Rahul disrespected NE by not wearing 'gamosa' at President's Republic Day event: Shah

Shah alleged that the Congress did nothing for the development of the state, but the BJP dispensation in Assam, under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has taken a series of initiatives for the progress of all sectors. The recent free trade agreement FTA between India and the EU will ensure that Assam tea shipments will go to European countries with zero tariff, he said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of disrespecting the North East by refusing to wear a 'gamosa', presented by President Droupadi Murmu at the 'At Home' reception hosted by her on Republic Day. All dignitaries, including those from abroad, had worn the scarf as a mark of respect, but Gandhi was the ''only person to refuse'' to do so, Shah claimed, while addressing a public rally at the Khanikar Parade Ground here. ''Rahul Gandhi can do whatever he wants, but as long as the BJP is in power, it will not allow any disrespect of the North East's culture,'' he said. Shah also alleged that the Congress did nothing for Assam's development. ''I want to ask Rahul Gandhi what his party has given to Assam except guns, bullets, conflicts and deaths of youth,'' the union home minister said. Shah also accused the Congress of using infiltration as a ''weapon of its vote bank politics''. ''There has been no infiltration in Assam since the BJP came to power. Those who had come to India illegally will be identified and sent back,'' he added. Asserting that before the last elections, the BJP had pledged that infiltration, which ''changed Assam's demography and compromised the nation's security'', would be stopped, he said, ''We kept our promise''. Shah alleged that the Congress did ''nothing'' for the development of the state, but the BJP dispensation in Assam, under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has taken a series of initiatives for the progress of all sectors. ''Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has ensured equal rights of all communities by focusing on their all-round development,'' the union minister said. Shah also accused the Congress of doing ''nothing for the welfare of the tea garden workers'' who have positioned Assam, particularly Dibrugarh, as the tea capital of the country. ''The chief minister has amended the law to ensure that the tea garden workers get ownership rights of land,'' he said. Shah alleged that the Congress had issued a toolkit to defame Assam and its tea industry. The recent free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the EU will ensure that Assam tea shipments will go to European countries with zero tariff, he said. ''The EU-India trade pact will boost Assam tea exports to European countries'', he asserted. Shah said the BJP had promised in the last polls that its government would make Assam flood free, and ''the steps in this direction have already been taken before the 2026 elections''. He appealed to voters in Assam to ''elect the BJP for the third consecutive term to ensure development, peace, security, industrial and agricultural progress, and make Assam free from infiltration and flood''. Shah also paid his tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of Martyrs' Day.

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