New Delhi, Feb 2: Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday claimed that the people of the Northeast have rejected the Congress for its alleged neglect of the region and “systematically looting” its prosperity and potential, saying the opposition party has no hopes of winning any election in the future.
Initiating the motion in the Lok Sabha to thank President Droupadi Murmu for her address to the joint sitting of Parliament, Sonowal said the speech should be read not only as a roadmap for India’s future, but also as a historic verdict on the failures of the Congress and a declaration of the irreversible national transformation achieved under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He said Murmu, India’s first Adivasi president, second woman president and the youngest president of a nation with the world’s largest youth population, delivered a “remarkable” speech.
“It is not a coincidence but a conscious reflection of a great nation in motion. It embodies our journey towards reclaiming our civilisational legacy while building a fair, equitable and free society,” he said.
The ports, shipping and waterways minister also claimed that decades of Congress rule “systematically looted” the property, prosperity and potential of the Northeast, reducing a region rich in resources, culture and strategic importance to a “zone of neglect, agitation and deprivation”.
He claimed that during the Congress rule, all major institutions, industries, refineries, bridges and connectivity projects in Assam were approved only after prolonged mass movements, protests and sacrifices.
“Without agitation, there was no solution. The Congress forced the Northeast to beg for what was rightfully its own. It was not neglect by accident but by design,” he claimed.
Sonowal also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has become the most popular leader in the Northeast region due to his continuous attention towards its development.
“The people of the Northeast don’t consider you (Congress) as our own. You have looted the Northeast, you have deprived people of their legitimate demands. You will be rejected in every election in the Northeast. There is no point of you trying,” he said.
Sonowal also said that as a proud tribal son of India, he was bestowed the honour to present the Motion of Thanks to the president’s address in the Lok Sabha,
“As a tribal from the Northeast and Assam, I feel immense pride in moving the Motion of Thanks – becoming the first tribal and the first MP from the Northeast to do so, symbolising an India where social justice, inclusive growth and the resolve for a Viksit Bharat guide our parliamentary history,” he said.
The minister also claimed that then-prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru said goodbye to the Northeast in 1962 during the Chinese aggression.
“The previous Congress governments were known for rampant corruption and scandals such as the 2G spectrum case, coal block allocations, CWG, among others. Now you have a fair, transparent and corruption-free government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the minister said.
Sonowal asked the Congress to give up its opposition and “hatred” towards the government and join the prime minister’s resolve to achieve a self-reliant, ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047.
He also claimed that there was low self-esteem in the country during the UPA rule due to policy paralysis and corruption.
However, since 2014, after Narendra Modi became the prime minister, there have been changes in the socio-economic landscape of the country along with all-around development, he claimed.
In the 11 years since 2014, Sinowal said, the country has become the fourth-largest economy in the world, which has been possible due to the political will and visionary leadership of Prime Minister Modi. (PTI)
