Cong accuses Himanta of making ‘misleading statements’ in Assembly

Guwahati, Feb 21 (PTI) The Congress alleged on Friday that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has been making "misleading statements" in the Assembly, and urged the leader of the House to refrain from doing so.

The opposition party's assertion was about a statement of Sarma over the Centre's responsibility to provide funds for tribal areas.

Addressing a press conference here, leader of the opposition Debabrata Saikia said, “The chief minister has been making statements in the Assembly which are not correct. Since the scope of raising these issues is limited in the House, we are bringing this to the fore here.” Saikia claimed that the Central government is committed to providing funds for the Sixth Schedule areas, but Sarma had stated in the Assembly that New Delhi is not bound to allocate any money.

The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution deals with provisions regarding the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

“The Constitution mandates the Central government to allocate funds for tribal areas, Sixth Schedule areas. It was wrong for the chief minister to say that Centre is under no such obligation,” the Congress leader said, referring to Sarma’s statement on the first day of the ongoing Budget session.

In case of Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), a special package of Rs 1,500 crore was announced as part of the 2020 peace accord, but with the Centre refusing to give the entire package, the state government is also paying its matching share, Saikia claimed.

The special package will be provided over a period of nine years, with both the Centre and the state paying Rs 250 crore each in every three years, he said.

“There is a need for transparency in BTR accounts as reports of corruption are emerging. The chief minister should look into it,” Saikia added.

He also dismissed Sarma’s assertion that he is the first chief minister to stay overnight in BTR headquarter Kokrajhar multiple times.

“It is a misleading statement. Kokrajhar district was formed under the Congress government and chief ministers have visited it time and again,” he maintained.

Saikia also rejected the chief minister’s allegation that the Congress had failed to work for the development of the tea tribes.

“Legislations for protection of tea garden workers, including provision for PF, were enacted during Congress governments. Education infrastructure was strengthened in the gardens. These steps helped in improving the life of the tea tribes,” he added.

Saikia urged the chief minister to refrain from making ‘misleading statements’ in the Assembly in the future. PTI SSG NN

Source: PTI