BJP endangering peace in Northeast, says Cong

Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who is back from his short trip to Italy to meet his 93-year old grandmother, on Monday said his party respects the mandate of the people of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, vowing to strengthen the party across the Northeast and win back the trust of the people.

Tone of the party statement was, however, harsh, accusing the BJP of following ‘a dangerous game of destabilisation, subversion and usurpation of power in Northeast, unmindful of stability, security, peace and progress.’

Its chief spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said the BJP should have learnt from then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who put ‘Nation First’ policy and brought peace to the region through Assam and Mizo accords.

He said the BJP’s policy of assumption of power “at any cost” and “by any means” is binding it in destabilising the entire Northeastern region.

“Telltale signs of BJP’s blind quest for power superseding the stability of region, propagation of democracy, nipping the separatist tendencies & ignoring core issues of region are already visible,” Surjewala said.

He pointed out how the BJP has embraced only trouble in the region. He said the BJP has aligned in Tripura with IPFT whose election plank is division of the state and now demands a tribal CM. “Time for Modi government and BJP to answer whether it stands for division of Tripura.”

In Nagaland, the BJP was part of the NPF-led government but fought election in alliance with NDPP, the opposition party, and now both regional parties are staking claim to form the government. “Is Nagaland headed for another round of instability like in the last five years?”

Surjewala ridiculed th BJP that it won just two seats in the Meghalaya Assembly polls and yet it has sewn up a government “in lust of power at any cost” with every discordant party that fought BJP and each other.