Old promises repackaged: Congress slams BJP manifesto as 'copy-paste'

Congress leader Pawan Khera tore into the BJP's manifesto at a lively press conference in Barpeta on April 3, calling it a "copy-paste document" that lands in the dustbin post-voting. He contrasted it with Congress's "historic" version, crafted through public consultations and backed by firm timelines for every promise.

Khera zeroed in on Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's reluctance to pursue justice for singer Zubeen Garg. "The Chief Minister does not want justice for Zubeen Garg because he wants to protect a few individuals," he charged, linking the CM's unease to Congress's pledge for resolution within 100 days.

He demanded to know whom Sarma was shielding, dismissing the CM's court-justice retort as evasion—courts, he noted, sometimes reopen weakened cases like accused bank accounts.

Barpeta's neglect under a "double-engine" regime drew sharp criticism: no railway station, no university, and a "land mafia government" allegedly grabbing 12,000 bighas from Adivasis and tribals, including by the CM's family. Khera vowed reclamation and punishment.

Unemployment stares Assam in the face after a decade without new jobs, he said, promising employment for all—except Sarma, whose "unemployment" would free up opportunities. Government contracts, he alleged, favour the CM's inner circle, robbing ordinary youth; Congress would fix that.

Health and development lapses stung too. Despite BJP's vow for 500-bed hospitals per district, facilities have crumbled. Now, with Congress offering Rs 25 lakh cashless coverage per person, the CM is rattled, Khera quipped. He mocked Sarma's "Mama" nickname: "You call him ‘Mama’, but I fail to understand how you can address someone like that who has made a fool (‘mamu’) of the entire state."

Congress's agenda dazzled: MSP for mustard and paddy, land for farmers, tea workers' wage hikes, tea as Assam's top industry, 30% reservation for locals in factories, and revival of handicrafts. On intruders stoking division, Khera warned: “People of Assam will not allow hate to be spread by outsiders coming on instructions from Nagpur via Hyderabad.” Without naming Asaduddin Owaisi or Badruddin Ajmal, he branded them BJP puppets, echoing RSS hate—Assam's harmony won't budge.

Khera brushed off Congress's Barpeta nomination snag as under probe and dismissed Owaisi as irrelevant. Victory beckons for the Congress alliance with Assam Jatiya Parishad and Raijor Dal, riding twin waves against BJP and for change. "The final results will surprise everyone," he predicted, eyeing a young new CM.