STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: Senior Congress leader Tarun Gogoi has made Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma responsible for adverse reactions and protests against the latest assertion of Union Home Minister Amit Shah to make the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) a law.
Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday former Chief Minister Gogoi said if the Assam BJP did protest strongly against the CAB, the Centre would have given a rethink on the proposed legislation. He praised Chief Ministers of Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland who on Monday expressed their concern and fear about the CAB before Shah during the 4th NEDA conclave in the city.
“But our Chief Minister Sonowal remained mum on the issue. He was rather seen appreciating Shah. Despite being a signatory of the Assam Accord, the AGP leadership represented by Atul Bora did not raise the CAB issue in NEDA conclave. Both Sonowal and Himanta Biswa Sarma maintained silence only to remain in power,” Gogoi said. He said it is high time to launch a joint fight by different organizations including AASU against the CAB.
According to Gogoi the NRC will be become valueless if the CAB becomes a law. “While the NRC has been prepared taking March 25, 1971 as cut-off date to detect and deport illegal foreigners from Assam, the CAB sets December 31, 2014 as the deadline to allow migrants from Bangladesh to come to India,” he said. Gogoi claimed that he had predicted before that the final NRC would become a waste paper.