CM Himanta Slams INDIA Bloc's CEC Stunt, Greenlights Anti-Polygamy Service Rule
Launching a scathing attack on the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted on Wednesday that Rahul Gandhi can only ever become the Prime Minister inside a "mock Parliament," while Narendra Modi will firmly continue to lead the nation in the real Parliament. Speaking in Guwahati in response to the opposition INDIA bloc's symbolic impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, Sarma dismissed the gesture as political theatre born out of electoral desperation. Remarking that Sonia Gandhi made repeated unsuccessful attempts over the years to elevate her son to the prime ministership, Sarma took a jibe at the opposition's staged proceedings at Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's residence, calling it the only forum where Rahul Gandhi's prime ministerial ambitions could ever be realized.
From Kharge’s Residence to Ramlila Maidan: The Tug-of-War Over Voter Roll Revisions
The confrontation unfolds against the backdrop of an intensifying face-off between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition coalition regarding the Election Commission of India's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and alleged discrepancies in electoral rolls. The INDIA bloc escalated the dispute over the weekend by staging a mock parliament session in New Delhi to pass a symbolic impeachment resolution against CEC Gyanesh Kumar, following it up with a joint opposition rally at Ramlila Maidan on Sunday featuring top figures including Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav. Characterizing the demonstrations as an attempt to undermine independent constitutional institutions after facing repeated defeats at the hustings, BJP leaders have maintained that the Election Commission's sanitization of voter registers adheres strictly to statutory legal mandates.
CBI Probe Sought for Eastern Assam Deluge and Summary Dismissal for Polygamous Employees
Beyond his political remarks, Chief Minister Sarma announced key decisions from Tuesday's Assam Cabinet meeting, confirming that the state government will formally petition the Centre within the next 10 days to initiate a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the catastrophic floods that ravaged eastern Assam earlier this year. Highlighting that unprecedented flash floods and embankments breached by the Dikhow River wrought extensive destruction across Sivasagar, Charaideo, and Jorhat districts, Sarma stressed that an independent central probe is essential to uncover the exact physical and administrative causes behind the disaster. Simultaneously, the State Cabinet approved an amendment to the Assam Service and Discipline Rules, introducing a strict anti-polygamy provision: any state government employee found practicing polygamy, irrespective of religious affiliation, will face immediate termination from service and permanent disqualification from future government employment.
'Begging for Foreign Intervention': BJP Counters Rahul Gandhi With Archived London Video
Adding to the political exchange, the BJP mounted a national counteroffensive against Rahul Gandhi over his recent remarks alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi secured power with foreign assistance. Sharing an archived video clip of the Congress leader from his March 2023 tour of the United Kingdom on the social media platform X, BJP National Spokesperson CR Kesavan accused the Congress lawmaker of hypocrisy, asserting that it was Rahul Gandhi who openly sought foreign meddling in India’s domestic democracy during his interactions with British parliamentarians and think tanks. Kesavan argued that Gandhi's documented London remarks—in which he stated that the battle for Indian democracy was "not just India's fight"—exposed a consistent pattern of inviting external interference to settle domestic political contests, calling the narrative a self-defeating tactic that damages national standing abroad.
