‘Toll money in return for potholes, injuries, accidents’: Assam Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi after NH-27 crash
Gaurav Gogoi criticised Assam's national highways after a fatal NH-27 crash near Guwahati killed six people. The collision triggered protests over road safety, toll collection and alleged negligence on the damaged stretch.
- Sep 01, 2026,
- Updated Sep 01, 2026, 8:02 AM IST
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi has criticised the condition of Assam’s national highways following a fatal road accident near Guwahati that claimed six lives, saying the BJP government was collecting tolls while failing to provide safe roads.
“I have continued to say that the state of national highways in Assam is quite poor, especially from Guwahati to Tinsukia,” the Assam Congress MP said in a post on X on August 31.
“People” were being given “potholes, injuries, accidents and animals crossing the highway” in return for the toll money collected at toll gates, Gogoi said. He also alleged that “taxpayers’ money” was being wasted through a “minister-contractor nexus”.
His remarks came a day after a passenger-carrying commercial vehicle collided head-on with an oncoming truck at Khetri Nalgedra on the outskirts of Guwahati on Sunday, August 30. Six people were killed and three others injured in the crash, according to reports.
The injured were taken to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH). According to preliminary information, the commercial vehicle, bearing registration number AS 01 HC 0716, was heading towards Guwahati when its driver reportedly lost control. The vehicle crossed the highway divider and crashed into a truck coming from the opposite direction.
The collision brought traffic on National Highway-27 to a standstill, with a long queue of vehicles forming along the route. Police, emergency personnel and other authorities reached the spot as efforts were made to clear the road and restore traffic movement.
The accident also led to a protest by local residents, who demanded that officials from the Sonapur tollgate visit the site. Protesters blocked NH-27 for nearly three hours, raising concerns about road safety and alleged negligence by tollgate authorities.
Residents also complained about the condition of the highway in the area, claiming that damaged stretches of road have contributed to frequent accidents.
The allegations will form part of the wider scrutiny into the circumstances surrounding the crash. Police are continuing to establish the identities of the deceased and determine what led to the collision.