Assam CM asks Rahul Gandhi not to visit shrine during Ram temple event
Guwahati: Amid the ongoing diatribe between the Congress and the BJP, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is in the state for his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, not to visit Batadrava Satra, the birthplace of Srimanta Sankardeva on Monday the day of pran-pratishtha (consecration ceremony) of Lord Ram Lalla in Ayodhya.
Mr Sarma told reporters, “I will request Rahul Gandhi not to visit Batadrava on Monday during the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple as it will reflect Assam in the wrong light. He can reschedule his visit in the afternoon after the consecration ceremony is over in Ayodhya.”
Asserting that he has not been invited by the Satra, he clarified that in some sections of the media it has been presented that when the consecration ceremony is held, the Congress leader will be in the birthplace of Srimanta Sankardeva. “There can be no competition between Lord Ram and the medieval-age Vaishnav saint,” the chief minister said while asking that the Congress leader could visit the shrine after the pran-pratishtha ceremony is over without creating unnecessary competition, which would be sad for Assam.
Mr Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit and offer prayers at the Batadrava Satra on Monday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be presiding over the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya. It is significant that Srimanta Sankardeva, an Assamese saint-scholar, social-religious reformer, poet, and playwright, is revered as an icon and a towering figure in the cultural and religious history of Assam.
Citing several law and order reasons Mr Sarma also advised Mr Gandhi to avoid his yatra on his proposed route at least on Monday. “These areas are sensitive and I cannot discount any law and order situation arising and as such commandos will be deployed along sensitive routes of minority-dominated areas to be taken by Rahul Gandhi's Yatra on Monday,” he said.
For Monday, the Congress has chosen a route through sensitive areas of Morigaon, Jagiroad, and Nellie which could have been avoided, the chief minister said. District Commissioners and Superintendents of Police in these areas have been directed to increase patrolling and maintain a strict vigil, said Mr Sarma.
In response to a question about a Congress leader writing a letter to the CBI director asking for an inquiry against his family members, the chief minister said that Mr. Rahul Gandhi was first scared of him, but now he is scared of my children too. “Rahul Gandhi pehle toh mujhse darta tha, ab mere bacche se bhi darna shuru kar diya,” he said, adding that they are not in politics. He dared Mr Gandhi to ask for inquiry against all the news channels of Assam instead of targeting only the channel owned by his wife.
Meanwhile, Mr Sarma also declared a holiday on Monday for all educational institutions, including government schools, colleges, and universities, on the occasion of the pran-pratishtha ceremony. He also urged the private educational institutions to remain closed on Monday. Additionally, he announced the dry day and closure of wine shops for the entire day and the closure of meat, fish shops, and markets till 4 pm on Monday.
