Guwahati: Congress MLA Rakibuddin Ahmed on Tuesday mounted a sharp attack on the BJP, accusing the ruling party of indulging in divisive politics by targeting the Miya-Muslim community and raising serious objections over alleged irregularities in the electoral rolls at the Boko-Chaygaon Co-District Commissioner’s office.
Speaking to reporters at Goraimari in Assam’s Chamaria constituency, Ahmed criticised what he described as a sustained political narrative aimed at isolating Miya-Muslims.
He said Assam has a long history of peaceful coexistence among people of different ethnicities, religions and linguistic backgrounds, and warned that attempts to single out any community would weaken the state’s social harmony.
The Congress legislator strongly objected to efforts to link language with nationality, terming claims that equate Bengali speakers with Bangladeshi identity as “completely unfounded”.
He pointed out that Bengali is spoken across several Indian states and regions, including Tripura, West Bengal and parts of Assam such as Hojai, and argued that language cannot be used as a benchmark to brand anyone an outsider.
Accusing the BJP of deliberately fostering divisions along caste, religious and community lines for electoral advantage, Ahmed maintained that the Congress has never followed such a strategy.
He said politics rooted in exclusion and suspicion only damages democratic values and social cohesion. Ahmed also referred to an incident at the Boko–Chaygaon Co-District Commissioner’s office, allegedly occurring on the night of January 22, which later came into public focus.
He claimed that leaders associated with the BJP were involved in the addition and deletion of names from voter lists, describing the matter as a grave violation of democratic norms.
Linking the episode to broader concerns over electoral integrity, the MLA said it reinforced earlier allegations made by senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi regarding the manipulation of votes.
According to Ahmed, the incident reflected a worrying pattern that could erode public confidence in the electoral process. He said the Congress has already approached the Election Commission of India, demanding a comprehensive and impartial inquiry.
The party, he asserted, would continue to pursue the issue and would not remain silent against any attempt to influence elections through unfair or illegal means.
(IANS)
