NEW DELHI, May 16 – The Congress Party high command may be busy stitching together an alliance, but the Congress-ruled Assam Government is ready with its own wish-list, with Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi contemplating to seek a special package for employment generation and solution of the flood and erosion problem on a priority basis. The news of return of the Congress back to power at the Centre has brought with it hopes for Congress-ruled States like Assam, which has for long been alleging discrimination at the hands of BJP-led NDA Government. “I am expecting a better treatment from the Centre this time,” said a visibly pleased Chief Minister. The Chief Minister was addressing a press conference here where he introduced the newly elected MPs of the Assam. Those present were Bijoy Krishna Handique, Anwar Hussain, Kirip Chaliha, Lalitmohan Suklabaidya, Dip Gogoi and AF Golam Osmani.
“Sonia Gandhi has sympathy for the North East and she is concerned about development of the region. She would definitely do much more than the NDA Government and I will also take up the issues,” he said. Though he was cautious not to go over-board, he said that he plans to raise certain issues on a priority basis with the Central Government once it is in place. The special package for employment generation, declaration of the flood problem as a national problem, the gas cracker project, among others, would be taken up, he added.
The problems of insurgency, illegal immigration are of course there, but the above issues needed to be accorded top priority, he explained. Our thrust would be to ensure that whatever promises were made by the Centre should be implemented,” he said. The Chief Minister’s wish-list may take some time to materialise but of immediate expectation is the number of berths in the Central Government. “Though we have to share a few seats with our allies, we expect proportionate representation in the council of ministers,” he said. Pressed further, he said that he expects to get at least three seats, barring that of Dr Manmohan Singh. His berth would be from the national quota and not from Assam,” he remarked lightly. Dr Singh, a Rajya Sabha member from Assam, is tipped to take over as the Union Finance Minister for the second term.
Meanwhile, Sri Gogoi, whose stock has gone up with the party high command for managing to retain nine seats in the Lok Sabha, was congratulated by AICC president Sonia Gandhi for his feat. He spoke to his party chief over telephone on Friday night and personally met her at Parliament House yesterday. Going hammer and tongs against the BJP government for singling out Smt Gandhi for attack and for its unfulfilled promises in the North East, he said, “The BJP should realise that the people have rejected Ram Janmabhoomi and Sonia Gandhi’s janmabhoomi issues.”
Continuing with the tirade, Sri Gogoi said that none of the promises by the NDA Government was kept. In this connection, he pointed out that the Rs 500-crore sanctioned to the North Eastern Council was also reduced but was restored after vehement protest from the Chief Ministers. The Finance Ministry also did not set right the deficit in the Eleventh Finance Commission recommendations despite repeated pleas. “Our request for releasing the Central share of the Centrally-sponsored schemes went unheeded and we are still not aware about the fate of the request to change the pattern of funding from 75:25 to 90:10,” he said.
In contrast, he listed the out the projects sanctioned during the Congress regime right from the days of Indira Gandhi to PV Narasimha Rao. On the political front, Sri Gogoi said that they considered AGP as more potential threat than the BJP. “I don’t think BJP would go any further in Assam after this debacle,” he opined. For the Party’s defeat in Lakhimpur and Dibrugarh seats, he observed that the sense of complacency and overconfidence led to defeat of the party’s candidates.