Fact Check: Did Randeep Singh Sujerwala just call Shillong youths as ‘terrorists’?

GUWAHATI: Recently a screenshot taken from an Assam based news channel being shared widely, which reads that Congress national General Secretary Randeep Singh Sujerwala ‘calls Shillong youth terrorists’, from his recent press conference in New Delhi.

But did the senior Congressman Sujerwala actually say so? To find it out, InsideNE has gone through his speech thoroughly and here’s what we have found.

[caption id="attachment_100000" align="alignnone" width="700"] The shared screenshot[/caption]

Sujerwala chaired a press conference on unrest that has been going on in the Northeastern region of India which he felt was being overshadowed in the media due to the chaos that prevailed in Afghanistan.

Also Read: Assam Police Fired Without Provocation Claims Mizoram Counterpart

“The situation is beyond alarming. Multiple States of North East are being pushed into an unprecedented cycle of lawlessness with complete breakdown of law and order and constitutional machinery,” said Sujerwala.

Taking a reference of border clash between Assam and Mizoram, which turned bloody on July 26 last, Sujerwala accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of remaining oblivious and slammed Union home Minister Amit Shah for allegedly not being able to ensure internal security of the country.

Sujerwala asked, “Isn’t it Shah’s duty?”

Following that Sujerwal came to the Independence Day violence in Meghalaya and said,” Meghalaya is also a part of BJP’s Northeast Democratic Alliance (NEDA). Whole nation witnessed, though the media did not show, how taking AK47 and guns in hand inside the capital Shillong, waiving Taliban like black flags and covering their faces, terrorists roamed through the capital Shillong and nobody could stop them.”

The press conference which is available on YouTube channel of Indian National Congress, this specific segment that stirred up controversy could be heard between 10:52 and 11:02 minutes, where Sujerwala nowhere seemed to call, or even mention, youths of Shillong as terrorists.

Sources told InsideNe that this specific screenshot is being circulated by National People’s Party, the ruling party of Meghalaya, as well.

At a time when a state is under serious breakdown of law and order situation, where even Chief Minister and Governor’s convoy of the state had not been spared from targeted attacks of miscreants, spreading of such misinformation can worsen the situation and put thousands of civilians in danger as well.

Sujerwala meanwhile decided to file a defamation case against the news channel as per Assam Congress has tweeted.

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