Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma stirred controversy on Monday as he referred to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi as ‘Ravan’ during the latter’s visit to the state as part of the ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.’ In response to Gandhi’s remarks attacking him, Sarma stated, “Why are you talking about Ravan today? At least talk about Ram today. We have the opportunity to talk about Ram after 500 years. We should only talk about him and not about Ravan.”
Sarma’s comment coincided with the ‘pran pratishtha’ ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the same day.
High drama unfolded in Assam’s Nagaon as Rahul Gandhi was stopped from visiting the Sri Sri Sankardeva Satra and holding a meeting in the Morigaon district. Expressing protest, Gandhi questioned whether PM Modi would decide “who will visit a temple and when.”
Gandhi, accompanied by senior party leaders, sat on a dharna after being stopped at Haibargaon. The Congress claimed that authorities didn’t provide any reasons for preventing the visit.
“Will PM Modi now decide who will visit a temple and when?… We do not want to create any problems and simply pray at the temple,” Gandhi said to police authorities, expressing his disappointment over being denied access to the birthplace of the iconic saint Srimanta Sankardeva.
Rahul Gandhi alleged that Modi exerted pressure on the Assam government to prevent him from visiting the birthplace of the revered saint. Gandhi emphasized his belief in Sankardeva’s philosophy of bringing people together and avoiding the spread of hatred, considering him a guiding figure for the Congress.
Dhairya Saraswat