Addressing a rally in Assam's Nagaon, Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress President and Rajya Sabha MP, directed his remarks at Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, labeling him as "Modi ka chela" (a disciple of Prime Minister Narendra Modi). Kharge went on to assert that Sarma exhibits fear towards Dalits, minorities, and the backward classes within the country. The Congress leader's pointed comments were prompted by an alleged attack on the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, led by Rahul Gandhi, in Assam by BJP workers.
Speaking in the Nagaon district of Assam, Kharge stated, "Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra will cross 15 states...The Yatra before this was undertaken from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. At that time, no stone pelting occurred anywhere. No attempts were made to scare off...Why is this happening in Assam? Because he (Assam CM) is the 'chela' of PM Modi. He listens to what Shah says. He scares the Dalits, minorities & backward class of the country. By scaring people, he is working on the next election."
Kharge, in his speech, also used a cat analogy to illustrate the strained relationship between Himanta Biswa Sarma and the Congress. He remarked, "This is like 'meri billi mujhse hi meow' (my cat meows at me). We have seen several such people. We will never be scared, and this is Congress' promise."
Earlier on the same day, Congress alleged that BJP workers in Assam's Sonitpur district "manhandled" senior leader Jairam Ramesh's car and accompanying camera persons during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. The grand old party also claimed a "targeted attack" by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the youth wing of the BJP, on several vehicles of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) in Assam's Lakhimpur district on Saturday.
Notably, the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, initiated by Rahul Gandhi on January 14 in Manipur, is set to conclude in Mumbai on March 20 or 21, covering 6,713 km across 110 districts in 15 states. The Assam leg of the journey, spanning 833 km across 17 districts, will continue until January 25.
