Zubeen Garg murder accused have links with Himanta Sarma: Gaurav Gogoi

India Today

In a special podcast on UnPolitics with India Today's Preeti Choudhry, Assam Congress President and party Member of Parliament from Jorhat, Gaurav Gogoi, discussed the upcoming state elections and the opposition's six-party alliance. In a startling development, he levelled serious allegations against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and some of the top BJP leaders in the state, saying they have alleged links with those arrested in the Zubeen Garg murder case. He said that the social media are full of Sarma's pictures with them.

Transcript

00:16I

00:17I

00:18I

00:18How are you? How's it going?

00:25You feel that people are prepared for change?

00:27People want to live in the village, not in the village.

00:31There is the popularity of Imam Tavishwa Sarma

00:33and it's the strong polarization and counter polarization. Do you agree?

00:37What is extremely also well known about Imam Tavishwa Sarma

00:41is the loot, corruption and wealth.

00:43So many people, who were connected to the old NSUI during the time of Congress

00:47are leaving and saying that they are leaving.

00:52When Imam Tavishwa Sarma has maintained the work of Bhajpa,

00:55how many people are going from Bhajpa?

00:57Imam Tavishwa Sarma loves the people who have gone from Congress

01:01and the people of RSS Bhajpa are looking at them.

01:09Mr. Gugwai, thank you for taking the time out

01:12on a very, very busy election schedule.

01:14It's our UnPolitics, you are our first guest.

01:18Yes, I do remember that.

01:19It's our UnPolitics election edition.

01:21Absolutely.

01:21But thank you for taking the time out.

01:23You are losing your voice.

01:24Enough rallies that are covered.

01:25How's the campaign going?

01:26Absolutely. Very good.

01:27I got tremendous enthusiasm from the people.

01:31I think they love the way we are approaching this election

01:33with a lot of positivity.

01:35The coalition, our candidates, the music, the way we are doing our road show.

01:41I think there's a lot of something that is positive,

01:44something that appeals to young people and people who are looking for a change.

01:49But are people looking for a change?

01:50And I'll ask it in Hindi as well.

01:51It's up to you whether you want to answer it in any language that you prefer,

01:54or how you connect with.

01:55Do you feel that people are ready for change?

01:59Yes, because there is no fear in the moment.

02:02People want to live in the direction of the people.

02:05There is no way to live in the direction of the people.

02:06And there is no way to ask the government questions.

02:10Today there is no way to ask the government questions.

02:13If people are asking for questions you will be sent to police or you will send the government

02:18to go to the government?

02:20Or, the government will be sent to us.

02:22If people are asking, decide to order anything to visit us.

02:30It is going to keep it flowing.

02:32The doctrine, which has a son, is a spirit of religion, and a Sanskrit.

02:38This whole doctrine of religion and Sanskrit has come up and out of 5 years.

02:44So there are people who are seeing the vibe of the world,

02:49who are looking for new ideas, and new ideas.

02:52And with this concept, we are going to use the new Islam.

02:59Lots of chauffeurs landing.

03:01I'm sure you're going to lose the audio there,

03:02but if you can, we can still carry on.

03:06Correct me if I'm wrong, Mr. Gogoi.

03:08You can correct me.

03:10But there is a sense, a perception,

03:12why is it that the Congress that you're fighting in your nitritus,

03:16is not for this election,

03:18but in 2031,

03:19that you're fighting this election,

03:22not for this election, but for 2031?

03:24Well, there's a difference between perception and truth.

03:27You're doing perception, we're living in truth.

03:30You're living with perception, we're living with the land.

03:33With the land, when people come to us,

03:35they say that you don't care, you'll be able to do your own.

03:39People come to us with their eyes,

03:41with their eyes, with their eyes,

03:44that they give us a reward.

03:45Old people come to us that they don't know this,

03:48they don't know this, they don't know this.

03:50Here's the witness, the witness witness,

03:56the witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness

04:05witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness

04:06witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness

04:09witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness witness

04:10witness

04:10I am asking this question that I hope that party people don't see you because so many people

04:18who were in the old NSUI during the time of Congress, were left with you today.

04:25They are saying that they are left with you.

04:30How many people left from the past 5 years ago?

04:35When I am talking about the past 5 years ago, how many people left from the past 5 years ago?

04:43I was talking about the RSS people who are not familiar with RSS.

04:48They are the people who left from the past 5 years ago.

04:53A person left RSS.

04:57the tribal lady who was a minister named Nandita Garlusa. Why? Because the people who went to the Congress

05:07and the people who went to the Congress and the people who went to the Congress and the people who

05:10went to the Congress.

05:12You don't even know how many people went to the Congress. If you go to the September 10th,

05:18there are many people who went to Congress and have very few people who went to Congress.

05:22So, the Congress has been affected by this whole process.

05:26And Himanto Ji has made all the former Congress leaders in the Congress.

05:32There is a lot of former Congress leaders in the Congress.

05:35And we say that we don't see the Congress.

05:38We see the former Congress leaders in the Congress.

05:41And this is a fight against the former Congress leader,

05:45which is with Himanto Vishwa Sharma.

05:47And we, who is a new Congress leader in our country.

05:50But, you know, but that's terrible documentary, Gugoy Ji,

05:55where you are concerned and your leadership and Assam Congress is concerned

05:59because you say it's a fight between the old, you know, Congress and the new Congress.

06:03But it is still the Congress.

06:04These were the people who should have been given the space within your party fold.

06:09But they've left saying that you had a coterie only functioned in that coterie.

06:13Is that correct?

06:13I think what we were focusing on is what people of Assam wanted.

06:19People of Assam wanted a strong viable opposition to Himanto Vishwa Sharma.

06:24If you are being in opposition, you should be able to take his name.

06:27You should be able to call him out for all the corruption.

06:30Now, if there are certain people for some reason who have a personal relationship with Himanto Vishwa Sharma

06:35because only because they used to work together.

06:38Now, it is their personal decision.

06:40If you take the case of Mr. Pradud Boduloye, he is someone that he is a sitting member of parliament.

06:45And his son was also given a ticket by the Congress party in this assembly election.

06:49Yet, he felt that he is not getting an opportunity despite the father and the son getting a ticket in

06:55the Lok Sabha and the Vidhan Sabha parallelly.

06:58At the same time, if you actually look at what is happening on the ground, BGP are extremely divided.

07:05The RSS, BGP cabinet talked to us.

07:07They feel like what is going on, we don't even recognize them.

07:10Because these are the people that the BGP and RSS fought tooth and nail when they were in government.

07:15So, now putting them in, I think it just shows that the BJP is just eroding its base by putting

07:21all the eggs in one basket and that being that of Himanto Vishwa Sharma.

07:24The Congress has put their eggs in three baskets and all of them come with the banner of Gogoye.

07:29As well as the six party alliance that you have forged, local parties.

07:34But if you deep dive into statistics, Mr. Gogoye, then, you know, these are leaders, these are parties that have

07:44influence in very, very small pockets.

07:46And would you be able to pull through, especially in the polarizing times you are fighting this election in?

07:52Because the rhetoric is very strong.

07:55It's Hindu, it's Muslim, it's a consolidation of two vote banks.

07:59A couple of things.

08:01First of all, we would have formed the government last time had we allied with these two parties.

08:05We lost close to 17 to 18 seats because the two regional parties with whom we tied up this time

08:11got around 5,000, 7,000 votes in 16 to 17 seats in upper Assam.

08:16And that's where we lost.

08:17And if you actually calculate how much the alliance got at that time, Congress, DPF, EIDF, we were actually just

08:23shot by that number.

08:24So, we would have formed then only.

08:26This time what we have done is that, you know, we've got rid of B teams.

08:30B teams like the EIDF party.

08:33And we've inducted these parties who have a significant hold and have a great emotional hold.

08:40And therefore, we have a rainbow coalition.

08:41I object to the part that there are three baskets.

08:45I think there are six.

08:45I mean, it's a rainbow coalition of multiple parties.

08:48We have a party which, you know, stands for the tribal people of the hill districts of Assam.

08:53We have the left parties following the leftist ideology.

08:56We have the Assam Jatya Parishad Dal which follows the politics of regionalism.

09:01We have the Raizo Dal which follows the politics of farmers based movement.

09:05And then you have our party which follows the politics of progressive nationalism.

09:09So, therefore, you have a rainbow coalition and we complement each other very well.

09:14And there's a tremendous chemistry not only amongst the leadership but also amongst the voters.

09:19This is what the people of Assam wanted.

09:21This is what we did.

09:22And I think this has given a tremendous hope that there is a strong viable opposition to the BJP-led

09:27alliance.

09:28The banner headline in the Assam elections are three.

09:31Number one, that this election, you know, at least with what my limited understanding of Assam is,

09:36is an election which many of us are not really speaking of, which is the direct cash transfers, the schemes,

09:43the beneficiary schemes.

09:44You know, you talk about the Aura Nudeh scheme, you talk about the entrepreneur scheme for women.

09:48And you can see that difference on the ground.

09:51Number two is delimitation, which has in certain way redrawn the demography of Assam politically,

09:58which is not conducive to what has been your traditional vote banks.

10:01At least that's the understanding.

10:02And then in midst of all of this, there is the popularity of Imanta Biswasarma and is the strong polarization

10:09and counter polarization.

10:10Do you agree?

10:11No, I don't agree.

10:12I think there's a sub context to all three of them.

10:14In the first case, when you talked about the schemes, as I said, when people are forced to choose a

10:20political party

10:21and become de facto political workers, if they want the benefit of that scheme,

10:26I think many people don't want to be captured in that kind of frame.

10:29People want to be given schemes irrespective of their political opinions.

10:34And that's our promise that women and everybody will not be punished for your political choices.

10:39Our schemes will be universal.

10:41It doesn't matter whether you're a Congress supporter or a critic, you would get the benefit.

10:45And that's very popular.

10:46But may I come in?

10:48Let me complete the other two because then I would lose my train of thought.

10:51Of course, of course.

10:51But you talked about the delimitation.

10:53The delimitation shows that the election commission is no longer a neutral empire.

10:57Out of the five states going to the election, in only one state which is led by an opposition,

11:03election commission goes to the extent of removing BDOs and chief secretaries.

11:07Here we are filing complaints against BJP, MLA's, against the BJP party, against the police

11:13because our candidates are being beaten up.

11:15It just happened a Gorkha candidate of ours in Norduwal.

11:18Sunil Chhetri got beaten up and the police is taking no action.

11:21The election commission is mum.

11:22So it shows a partisan election commission.

11:26And that's what makes people afraid about the state of democracy, that their rights are being attacked and threatened.

11:32And they feel, therefore, we must.

11:34This is not about just supporting a political party, but it's about supporting their rights.

11:38What is extremely, also, well-known about Himontho Bhishra Sharma is the loot, corruption and wealth.

11:45Everybody knows that there are close to 12,000 bigas or 4,000 acres of Assam's land that belongs to

11:52various members of his family.

11:54And this happened just overnight.

11:56So people of Assam are also very well aware of the kind of corruption.

12:00All these three factors are also pushing a lot of people who are unhappy with the state of affairs,

12:06who are not looking at the quantity of money, but the quality of life and the quality of education,

12:11the quality of governance, the quality of political discourse and the quality of health,

12:16while making up their mind to vote on 9th of April.

12:19Let me come to the first, which is the schemes and which is direct cash transfers.

12:24Because people are looking at it, in at least the ones we've spoken to, as deliverance.

12:29That there is no middle man.

12:31Paisa aa raha hai.

12:32And by the last count that we, you know, me and my team sat,

12:3675% of Assam is touched by at least one government scheme in Assam.

12:40That's a huge number, Mr. Gogoy.

12:42Every incumbent government has put their schemes.

12:45But does that mean every incumbent government has won? No.

12:48And again, look at the consciousness of women voters.

12:51As I said, women don't want to be exploited.

12:54Young people want a quality of education as well.

12:57So as I said, don't look at the quantum, but also look at the quality,

13:00the quality of our state, the quality of our democracy.

13:03And that's why people are very much sure.

13:05Even right now, you know, look at the quality of law and order.

13:09The chief minister himself said that if he does not provide justice in the case of Zubin Garg,

13:14the people of Assam need not vote for him.

13:17Six months have passed.

13:18We are near the elections and we are nowhere close to the truth.

13:21But now the chief minister doesn't say that.

13:23So, you know, you can't abuse the position of the chair of the chief minister of the state of Assam

13:29in such an uncivil and such a, you know, flagrant manner.

13:34And all of this, you know, people think about when they look at the,

13:37when as in terms of the quality of political leadership in this state.

13:40You spoke about Zubin Garg.

13:42Where has justice not been delivered?

13:45Because you have a country where the death took place, stating very clearly it was an accidental death.

13:50Are we, are we fanning the rhetoric in a state just for political gain?

13:56Not, that's not what the chief minister said.

13:58The chief minister in the Assam assembly said that Zubin Garg was murdered.

14:02But you say you'll give justice in 100 days of coming into power.

14:05That's what I'm saying.

14:06That what is the truth?

14:07Because the police from Assam went to Singapore,

14:10the government of India and the government of Singapore Aintox,

14:14they have enacted the mutual legal assistance treaty.

14:16They have, no doubt, they have been exchanging information.

14:19And yet, while the chief minister says he's been murdered,

14:22the government in Singapore with whom the government of India and the government of Assam have been talking,

14:26they are saying that it was a coincidental death.

14:29And we know though people who are in prison, they are, they are so close to the chief minister.

14:35The entire social media is flooded with pictures of the accused with the chief minister,

14:40of the members of the accused with top BJP leaders, even the other manager who is in prison.

14:46But they are accused, Mr. Gugoye, and they are not guilty.

14:49Well, the Singapore...

14:50Are you conducting a trial in this society in Assam political gain?

14:55Because you know better.

14:56Singapore is given a clean shit.

14:58The chief minister in Assam has said it's a murder.

15:01And chief minister...

15:02So, somebody is lying.

15:04And that's what we want to know.

15:05If after six months we don't know who is saying the truth and who is lying,

15:09then I think that we are far from closure.

15:11And in the end, truth and closure is what we need for justice.

15:16On the polarization and counter-polarization...

15:18We have seven more minutes, I checked.

15:19On the polarization and the counter-polarization.

15:22I want to ask you, Mr. Gugoye, that...

15:26A, do you agree that this is going to be a huge issue, this election for you?

15:30Because there seems to be a very strong counter-polarization where religion is concerned in Assam.

15:36I think people of Assam, you know, the way we've done our campaign,

15:40we've really taken a lot of the BJP's track record on these sensitive issues to the people.

15:45Now, they talk about, you know, illegal people entering India illegally from Bangladesh.

15:51Do you not believe illegal should be thrown out of this country?

15:53Hear me out.

15:54You know who's done more in terms of throwing them out?

15:57Not them, it's us.

15:58Look at parliament records, look at assembly records.

16:01Far more people who had entered India illegally were deported during Dr. Manmohan Singh's tenure...

16:06than during Narendra Modi ji's tenure.

16:09Look at the border fencing from which, you know, people, we can stop people.

16:13Far more kilometers of the border was fenced during Dr. Manmohan Singh ji's tenure than Narendra Modi ji's tenure.

16:20Look at the updation of the National Registrar of Citizens that took place in Assam.

16:24While that started and was initiated during Dr. Manmohan Singh, late Dr. Manmohan Singh's tenure, it remains incomplete.

16:31So, this government just talks but doesn't do.

16:35In fact, in the last Rajya Sabha election, the BJP took the support of Maulana Ajmal to get votes to

16:43help secure the victory for the third candidate.

16:45Most recently, Hemantabhishwa Sharma took three MLEs of Maulana Ajmal's party and made them join the NDA fold.

16:52In an interview, he has said that how he and Maulana Ajmal have a close political dialogue and a good

16:58relationship.

16:59So, this kind of double standards, hypocrisy, people of Assam are now very well acquainted with.

17:05And therefore, they feel that, you know, this is just politics.

17:10You know, Hemantabhishwa Sharma says, you know, I have evicted so many people.

17:15If there are people who have entered from Bangladesh illegally, how many of those homes, how many of those people

17:22have you sent back to Bangladesh?

17:26Why are they still here?

17:27If there are people who have entered India illegally, why have you given them cash grants?

17:32Why have you given them temporary land settlements?

17:34So, this kind of hogwash and double standards, I think this is a very sensitive issue.

17:38I think this is a very important issue. I think this is a very complex issue.

17:41A lot more needs to be done, which is not being done in this tenor.

17:46My last three questions. If you were to win your seat from Jorhat, you are already deputy leader of your

17:56party in parliament in Lok Sabha.

17:58You have your sitting MP from your seat in Jorhat. And if you were to win,

18:03if you win your seat, the assembly seat, because you are Jorhat's MP, what will you leave your MP?

18:11I take life as it comes.

18:13When I was written in the first time, the first thing was the media panelist.

18:19After the media panelist, I will become the Upro-Dalbati, Pradesh Congress,

18:25I will become the Upro-Dalbati.

18:29I will become the Upro-Dalbati's MP, and I will be the Upro-Dalbati.

18:33But I will be the Upro-Dalbati, which of the Upro-Dalbati,

18:39who are the Upro-Dalbati, which is the Upro-Dalbati,

18:43it is the Upro-Dalbati's MP.

18:54so that we can build a new community and a new community in India.

18:56This is what we can do.

19:00This is how we build a new institution in India.

19:02That's why we have a huge mental community.

19:07This is how a new institution you have got.

19:12So a new institution has got a new institution,

19:16and this institution has got a strange community here and other communities.

19:19They have got a small institutions and money here.

19:20We can all use the motions in our organisation nor the other,

19:24We think that we have to close this thing.

19:27If we think that the people of the people of Sharmak,

19:31we need to close this.

19:34When we think about Pita Ji,

19:36we'd have to close this,

19:42we have to close this point.

19:43This is the reason to close this point.

19:49The other thing that we think about

19:50which is very important to understand that when we have 4,000 acres of people in the area of the

19:56city,

19:59we have 10,000,000 people who are temporary,

20:04one year of 1,000,000 people,

20:07which we want to do permanent,

20:08because in the past few years,

20:10people's demand after this is the land.

20:14And the land is not permanent.

20:16Permanent Adhikar Aasthak Nahi Hai Anik Sarkari Portals Hai Par Kaam Nahi Ho Ra

20:2210 Laq Logo Ko Bhoomi Patta Unka Permanent Karna

20:25Yeh Hamaara Guaranty

20:26Aap CM Face Hai

20:28Aakhri Samaat

20:292 Sawa

20:29This Is The Second

20:31The Second Last Question

20:34Kyunki Aap CM Face Hai

20:36Aap Aap Nii Party Ke President Hai

20:38Aagar Aap Aap Na Aap Na Chunaab Jee Tate Hai

20:40Aap Ti Party Chunaab Harki Hai

20:42Aagar

20:42Hypothetical Sawaal Hai

20:44So The First Question

20:46Aap Aap Nite

20:47Aap Aap Ceerana

20:48Aap CM Face Hai

20:53Aap Aap Aap

20:54Imara PK

20:56ुशो शर्मा अपने आपको असम का राजा समझता है और लोग तंत्र में एक व्यक्ति या एक दल राजा नहीं

21:02होता लोग तंत्र में जनता राजा होती है यही चीज हमने अपने स्वर्गय पिताजी से सीखा है जो 15 साल

21:09मुख्व मत्री होने के पश्चाद दो बार किंद्र म

21:13हमेशा यह कहते रहें कि वो लोगों के सेवक है तो जनता के पास सत्ता जाए जनता जनाधन राजा बने

21:21यही हमारी उमीद है और इसी मकसद के साथ हम काम करें आप यह जो बाते करें वो टीवी चैनल

21:27में बातचीत करने के लिए अच्छा लगता है लेकिन उस वो हम हमारे ड

21:42राजनीती को उचे तरीके से सत्ता को उचे तरीके से इस्तमाल करने के मकसद से माया

21:48Fully patronize the Delhi media but my last question as are you how serious is the congress because you had

21:56tomorrow you had Priyanka Gandhi ji coming she's cancelled her visit possibly for health reasons is the congress really serious

22:02perception you are saying it's perception in your head

22:05पर बाहर ऐसा क्यों लगता है कि ये चुनाव once again I will say Congress 2031 के लिए fight कर

22:11रही है जो भी issues है इस चुनाव में sort out कर लो वो चुनाव हमारा है

22:15यही मैं दुबारा डिल्ली मीडिया को बोलता हूं यह हर चुनाव में सुनने को मिलता है आप एक बोलो आपने

22:20कौन से चुनाव में यह सवाल नहीं पूछ अगर

22:22Congress Party serious है की नहीं बाजपा के star campaigners आ रहे हैं आप लोग कहा हो यह मतलब वर्बिटिंग

22:29मतलब यह दो सवाल होता है लगता है आपके सवाल खतम हो जाते हैं आपके पिटोरे में और यह सवाल

22:34ही तो पूछ नहीं होता है यह हर सवाल में यह हर बार पूछा जाता है और Congress Party ने

22:40जि

22:52महिलाओं को बिना शर्त के उनको सरकारी सुविधा मिलेगी यह दर्शाता है कितने serious है आज जो हम कहते हैं

22:59कि गाओं में शराब और नशा की समस्या पंजाप की तरह यहां पर भी बहुत बड़ी समस्या हो गई है

23:06और नशा मुक्ती के लिए हम महिला समिती हम करना चाहेंगे

23:09यह दर्शाता है कि हम लोगों से कितना जुड़े हुए 26 में या 31 में

23:13आज जो महिला कहती है कि जब मैं पुलीस ठाने में जाती हो मेरे साथ मरब पेठ हुई है लेकिन

23:18हमारे case द्रज नहीं होते हैं पहले जितने case دर्ज होते थे

23:22today has got the case in the main event because the case has been missed.

23:30The case in the main event will be the first case in the main event and the main event will

23:38be the same as the main event.

23:54Thank you, Gaurag Gugoye Ji.

23:57Are you going to the Women's Reservation Bill?

24:00This was the idea of Suniya Ji.

24:04We also said that we had a deadline when we came to Parliament.

24:08We said that we should have to leave it.

24:12Now, in Delhi, we are with the Women's Reservation Bill.

24:19Despite that it will increase the seats.

24:23Because in Delhi, there are very different reactions.

24:27Madam Suniya Ji has made this bill, this idea.

24:31And I think that when you want to break the glass ceiling,

24:34you have to take some extreme steps.

24:37So, you know, and life adapts, society adapts and politicians also adapt.

24:42Well, thank you, sir. Thank you for taking the time out.

24:44And may the best man win.

24:47Thank you, sir.

24:48Thank you, sir.

25:17Thank you, sir.

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