'He was my mentor, he trained me'
STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said that "besides being a national leader, late Tarun Gogoi was a responsible Chief Minister who thought for the all-round development of Assam, every moment".
Rahul Gandhi paid his tribute to the former Chief Minister at the 'Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra' here on Wednesday. Taking a trip down memory lane, a nostalgic Rahul said, "Whenever I talked to him, I got the impression that I was talking to entire Assam, not to a person. He was my mentor, he trained me. He took together people of all hues in Assam. Like Gaurav Gogoi, he treated me as his son.
"When I came to Assam for the first a few years back, I was under the impression that I knew everything of Assam. But that thought had its base on my youthful arrogance. However, when I met Tarun Gogoi, my vision towards Assam changed totally. He taught me what humanity is in just five minutes. What I know of Assam today wouldn't have been possible had I tried to know of the State without his help. He made me know what Assam really is.
"His demise is a great loss for the nation, and personally for me. Whenever I talked to him, he talked on Assam only. He never said anything about himself. This was the degree of his love for the State. In his demise, the APCC (Assam Pradesh Congress Committee) will face a great challenge. However, I believe that he certainly trained the State PCC to face challenges of any sort."
Upon his arrival to Guwahati from Goa, Rahul Gandhi went straight to the 'Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra'. Paying tribute to the departed leader, he went to Gogoi's official residence at Dispur and expressed his sympathy to the bereaved family members before winding up his two-hour visit to the State.