New Delhi [India], January 30 : Congress leader Pawan Khera on Friday questioned Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the welfare of tea gardeners and tribals in Assam.
Speaking with ANI, Pawan Khera said, "What happened to the promise of MSP (Minimum Support Price) for the tea gardens? What happened to the six tribes you were supposed to give tribal status to? Narendra Modi said it would be done in six months. Amit Shah said it would be done in five years. 12 years have passed, and those tribes are still waiting."
"What happened to that? It's the Home Minister's job to answer, but he won't give any answers," he asked.
Pawan Khera refers to Assam tribal communities of the Tai Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Matak, Koch-Rajbongshi, and Tea Tribes (Adivasis), who have been demanding ST status for a decade.
Khera's remarks came after Amit Shah, in a rally in Assam's Dibrugarh on Friday, said that PM Narendra Modi had opened unprecedented economic and developmental opportunities for Dibrugarh and Assam.
During the rally, Amit Shah emphasised how the India-RU FTA benefits tea gardeners of Assam.
"PM Modi has done a great job for the people of Dibrugarh. The biggest benefit of this free trade agreement is going to be for the people here. Tea produced in the tea gardens of Assam will reach European morning tea cups with zero tariff across all 27 EU countries," he said.
Shah added that the agreement had opened a vast market for Assamese tea, enabling it to reach nearly one-third of the world tariff-free, from Paris to Berlin, and boosting competitiveness and profits for local growers.
Additionally, Pawan Khera also slammed Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma for repeatedly accusing Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi of having links with Pakistan.
Pawan Khera accused Himanta Biswa of "corruption" and said that now the CM is "hiding behind Pakistan" to hide his 'incompetence' ahead of the assembly elections.
"He has been singing the same tune for the past year because he doesn't have answers to his own corruption. 1.5 lakh acres of land, the land of the local Assamese tribals, the land of the sons of the soil, he has given it to PM Modi's friends. He doesn't have an answer for that. The tea garden workers are looking for answers. The tribals are looking for answers, and that's why he is hiding behind Pakistan," he said.
Earlier, Himanta Biswa Sarma revealed details from a Special Investigation Team (SIT) report, which he said proves state Congress President Gaurav Gogoi's "direct link with Pakistan."
Addressing the media after a cabinet meeting held at Lok Sewa Bhawan in Dispur on Tuesday, the Chief Minister said the SIT report pertained to a case registered against Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, along with Elizabeth Gogoi and Gaurav Gogoi, and allegedly demonstrated their connections with Pakistan
"The SIT has given the proof that three persons have a direct link with Pakistan - Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, Elizabeth Gogoi and Gaurav Gogoi. After seeing the presentation, our cabinet ministers were shocked," the Chief Minister told reporters.