‘Will make Assam Govt party to case against CAA in SC if voted to power’

New Delhi, Mar 12 (PTI):
Alleging that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act was the BJP’s “political tool” to divide society for votes, Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi on Friday said if the Congress-led alliance comes to power in Assam it will not allow its implementation and make the state government party to the ongoing case in the Supreme Court to oppose the controversial law. The Congress’ deputy leader in Lok Sabha said both the identity and the development of Assam are at stake in the upcoming polls to the 126-member Assembly, and asserted that the “winds of hope” in anticipation of a ‘Mahajot’ (grand alliance) government were blowing in the state.
In an interview with PTI, Gogoi also hit out at the BJP for criticising the Congress’ alliance with the Badruddin Ajmal-led All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), saying the alliances formed for the polls in the state were not based on religion but on whether one is for CAA or against it.
Asked if he would be willing to take on the mantle of chief ministership if the Congress-led ‘Mahajot’ comes to power, Gogoi said he has never been after any post and hopes to serve the party in whatever role it deems fit for him.
Gaurav Gogoi’s father Tarun Gogoi, who passed away last November, was chief minister of Assam for three terms successively between May 2001 and May 2016.
Gaurav Gogoi said his father has left a vacuum and nobody can fill his shoes.
“We miss his wisdom and experience tremendously.He was the one who proposed in a Congress core committee meeting last year in August that the Congress should enter into an alliance with the AIUDF and other like-minded parties in the 2021 elections. The concept of the ‘Mahajot’ is not recent and it was pushed by him,” he said.
“His (Tarun Gogoi’s) ideas remain alive, his work remains alive, people remember him and we have taken a pledge to fulfil his unfinished work and fulfil his dreams he set out for Assam,” Gaurav Gogoi said.
Asked about the Congress’ stance on illegal immigration, he said when it comes to the issue of illegal immigration, the Congress in Assam has a very well defined policy spelt out through the Assam Accord which is the guiding framework.
“Therefore, we will bring back the importance and value of the Assam Accord in terms of defining who is an Indian citizen and who is not. When it comes to the concerns of doubtful voters and Indian citizens who are fighting cases in foreigners’ tribunal we will ensure that their cases are looked at in a much more expedited manner,” Gogoi said.