• By Mayukh Debnath
  • Tue, 23 Jan 2024 07:14 PM (IST)
  • Source:ANI
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Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the party's 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', on Tuesday took a jibe at Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, saying that the "intimidation tactics" used by the latter and his party, the BJP, will ultimately "benefit" the nationwide march. The 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' is currently passing through Assam, where there have been multiple alleged attacks on the procession.

Rahul Gandhi's statemet followed a clash earlier in the day between Congress workers and the police in Assam's Guwahati. Reacting to the clash, CM Sarma said that he has instructed the state's Director General of Police (DGP) to register an FIR against Rahul Gandhi for "provoking the crowd". Earlier, on Sunday, the Congress leader was mobbed by a crowd whose members held placards that read "Rahul Gandhi Go Back" and "Anyay Yatra".

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- On Tuesday, a clash broke out between Congress workers and police personnel in the presence of Rahul Gandhi as the 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' tried to enter Guwahati. Earlier, CM Sarma had warned of legal action against Congress leaders if the procession tried to Guwahati without the administration's permission.

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- Following the clash, the Congress party alleged that a "conspiracy" was orchestrated to stop the 'yatra' by "putting up barricades".

- Reacting to the accusation on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), CM Sarma said, "These are not part of Assamese culture. We are a peaceful state. Such 'naxalite tactics' are completely alien to our culture. I have instructed [Assam DGP]to register a case against your leader [Rahul Gandhi] for provoking the crowd & use the footage you have posted on your handles as the evidence. Your unruly behaviour and violation of agreed guidelines have resulted in a massive traffic jam in Guwahati now."

- Hours after the clashes, Rahul Gandhi held a press conference wherein he stated, "Whatever the Assam CM is doing against the Yatra, it benefits the Yatra. The publicity that we might have not got, by doing this the Assam CM & Union Home Minister Amit Shah are helping us. Now, the main issue in Assam is the Yatra...It is their intimidation tactics...Our message of Nyay is reaching the people."

- On Sunday, Rahul Gandhi, while leading the 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', was on two occassions mobbed by large groups of people opposing the Congress march. The first of the two instances involved people holding BJP flags raising the chants of "Jai Shree Ram" and "Modi, Modi" surrounded Rahul Gandhi's bus in Assam's Nagaon.

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- "Around 20-25 BJP workers carrying sticks came in front of our bus, and when I came out of the bus, they ran away. They think that Congress is scared of the BJP and RSS. They are dreaming. They can tear as many posters and placards as they want. We don't care. We are not scared of anyone. We are neither scared of PM Narendra Modi nor Assam CM," Rahul Gandhi had said regarding the incident.

(With inputs from ANI)