Democracy and freedom of speech are in threat in PM Modi’s new India: Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi

Hitting out at the Prime Minister, Deputy leader of the Congress party in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi said that, Prime Minister has talked about the global conspiracy hatched to defame India, but the BJP government is continuously attacking India’s civil society, its people.

“All the protests and issues are India’s internal matter and the India’s civil societies, people are under attacked by the BJP government. During the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests, more than 500 people in Assam were arrested who are only talking about Assam’s culture, identity, Indian constitution. So many journalists have been arrested for only highlighting the corruption take place in Uttar Pradesh. So many civil society activists who are so elderly and fragile, they have been under jail because they have talked about corruption. In Assam, a person like Akhil Gogoi has been in jail, kept away from his parent without any judicial process being followed in his cases,” Gaurav Gogoi said.

The Congress MP from Assam’s Kaliabar constituency said that it is not about global celebrities, but the democracy and freedom of speech and expressions are in threat in the new India created by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Gaurav Gogoi alleged that, the BJP-led government is completely failed to address the needs of the tea garden workers and the tea industry.

“The BJP government has completely failed to address the needs of the workers of the tea garden and tea industry itself. If the tea industry is in doldrums it is because of the ineffective economic policies of the Prime Minister. The current Finance Minister herself who was earlier Commerce Minister knows the tea industry very well. Especially in Assam tea, we need GI tag, need to increase the daily wage of the workers who demanding Rs 351 per day. This was promised by the BJP five years ago but they failed to do so,” Gogoi said.

“In the PM’s speech instead of providing accountability and explaining why he failed to protect the tea industry, workers, he only tried to serve and excuse the global conspiracy. PM Modi didn’t mention anything about the flood and erosion problems of Assam, unemployment – one of the burning issues,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday visited the poll-bound state and inaugurated road projects under ‘Assam Mala’ of the Assam government worth Rs 7700 crore and laid the foundation stone of two medical colleges of Biswanath Chariali and Charaideo at a programme held at Dhekiajuli in northern Assam’s Sonitpur district.