Gujarat riots were state sponsored, Assam clashes were not: Tarun Gogoi

August 23, 2012
tarun_gogai

Guwahati, August 23: Tarun Gogoi, the beleaguered Chief Minister of Assam, has taken umbrage at comparisons being made between the Gujarat riots of 2002 and the ethnic clashes that have rocked his state in the last month; he says such comparison is "unfair."

"The Gujarat situation was sponsored by the state. They took months to control, thousands died. We controlled the situation within a week," Mr Gogoi told NDTV.

The CM now admits that there were initial delays in taking action when the Assam clashes began; delays he attributes to "shortage of forces and procedural delays", but he has lashed out at his detractors for the criticism that has come his way.

Mr Gogoi singles out senior BJP leader L K Advani, attacking him for accusing the Assam government of turning a blind eye to the problem of infiltration. "Advani misinterpreted my statement. I said a volcano-like situation in two districts, not the entire state. When Advani was the Home Minister, he didn't take any step like border fencing," the Congressman said.

The Assam clashes, which began as isolated incidents of murder in early July, within days turned into ethnic clashes between Bodos and Bengali-speaking migrants in four districts of lower Assam. Kokrajhar was the epicentre of the violence; almost 80 people have died and, at one point last month, 400,000 people who had fled their homes in fear crowded refugee homes set up by the government. Nearly two lakh have returned to their homes since.

Aftershocks of the clashes were felt in other parts of the country when morphed images and SMSes began to do the rounds creating panic among people from the North-East in cities like Bangalore and Pune. A few days saw many people board trains to go back home; special trains had to be run to meet the demand for train tickets to Guwahati. Mr Gogoi said, "Rumours spread like wild fire and created a sense of panic. They (students and others who rushed back home) are victims and we are encouraging them to go back. We have taken up the matter with the government to ensure that their jobs are retained."

Already reeling under the aftermath of the ethnic clashes in the state that have also earned him much criticism for what is seen by many as poor handling of the huge humanitarian crisis, Mr Gogoi also has some political storms to battle at home. His health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, considered close to him, has reportedly resigned. Mr Gogoi refuses to comment on that but is more forthcoming on accusations that he is promoting his son, Gaurab, who has just joined politics. "How could I promote my son. He has just joined. Earlier, I was promoting Himanta, Pradyut Bordoloi, Rakibul Hussain," he said.


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News Network
February 2,2020

New Delhi, Feb 2: The Congress on Sunday released its manifesto for Delhi polls, promising to implement unemployment allowance of Rs 5,000-7,500 per month and cashback schemes for water and power consumers, if voted to power.

Presenting the manifesto, Delhi Congress chief Subhash Chopra said the party will provide free power up to 300 unit per month.

The manifesto also committed to spend 25 per cent budget each year on fighting pollution and improving transport facilities.

An unemployment allowance of Rs 5,000 for graduates and Rs 7,500 for post graduates per month will be provided under the Yuva Swabhiman Yojna, he said.

The Congress will launch flagship cashback schemes for power and water supply to benefit consumers saving these resources. The party, if voted to power, will open 100 Indira Canteens to provide subsidised meals at Rs 15, Chopra said.

The Congress will challenge the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in the Supreme Court and demand the Centre to withdraw the law. The party will also not implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the existing form of the National Population Register (NPR), if voted to power in Delhi.

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News Network
June 6,2020

New Delhi, Jun 6: Military commanders of India and China are scheduled to meet today at Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC), to discuss the ongoing dispute along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.

The Commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps of the Indian Army Commander Lieutenant Gen Harinder Singh will meet his Chinese equivalent Maj Gen Liu Lin, who is the commander of South Xinjiang Military Region of Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) to address the ongoing tussle in Eastern Ladakh between the two countries over the heavy military build-up by the People's Liberation Army along the LAC there.

The two sides have held close to a dozen rounds of talks since the first week of May when the Chinese sent over 5,000 troops to the LAC.

On Friday, officials of India and China interacted through video-conferencing with the two sides agreeing that they should handle "their differences through peaceful discussion" while respecting each other's sensitivities and concerns and not allowing them to become disputes in accordance with the guidance provided by the leadership.

In the last few days, there has not been any major movement of the People's Liberation Army troops at the multiple sites where it has stationed itself along the LAC opposite Indian forces.

India and China have been locked in a dispute over the heavy military build-up by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) where they have brought in more than 5,000 troops along with the Eastern Ladakh sector.

The Chinese Army's intent to carry out deeper incursions was checked by the Indian security forces by quick deployment. The Chinese have also brought in heavy vehicles with artillery guns and infantry combat vehicles in their rear positions close to the Indian territory.

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News Network
May 27,2020

New Delhi, May 27: With 6,387 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, India's count of COVID-19 rose to 1,51,767 on Wednesday, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

170 people have also died in the last 24 hours due to the infection.

Currently, there are 83,004 active cases while 64,425 COVID-19 positive patients have been cured/discharged and one has migrated. So far, a total of 4,337 deaths have taken place across the country.

Among all states, Maharashtra has the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 54,758. Tamil Nadu has 17,728 cases with Gujarat at 14,821 cases. The national capital has 14,465 reported cases of coronavirus.

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