Try to integrate Pakistan & Bangladesh with India, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma tells Rahul Gandhi

GUWAHATI: Amid Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina’s diplomatic visit to India, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday asked Rahul Gandhi to try integrating Pakistan and Bangladesh with India for creating “Akhand Bharat,” an idea endorsed by RSS, instead of the “Bharat Jodo Yatra.”
Sarma called Congress’s 3,500-km journey from Kanyakumari to Kashmir led by Rahul as “comedy of the century.” He asked, “Isn’t this comedy. You (Congress) divided the country in 1947 and now you want Bharat jodo and you are trying to do this where the country is united. Rahul should go to Pakistan for ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ if they want unification.”
He added that that India was united from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Silchar to Saurashtra and it was Congress “who partitioned the country into India and Pakistan and then Bangladesh was created.”
“If Rahul Gandhi feels apologetic that my maternal grandfather [Jawaharlal Nehru] made mistakes, if he regrets it, then no point of ‘Bharat Jodo’ in Indian territory. Try to integrate Pakistan, Bangladesh and strive to create Akhand Bharat,” Sarma said.
Hasina, who is on a four-day trip, on Tuesday hailed India saying, “India is our friend. Whenever I come here, it is a pleasure for me, especially because we always recall the contribution India has made during our Liberation War. We have a friendly relationship, we are cooperating with each other.”
Sarma’s “Akhand Bharat” comment has brought out the strongest criticism from Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, who taunted his Assam counterpart saying that he must have gone to the RSS office and seen the map of “Akhand Bharat” in which Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are all part of India for which he is making such a statement.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “I don’t take the Assam CM seriously because he has to prove his loyalty every day after having been a part of Congress for 20-25 years. He is a recent migrant to the BJP, so he has to make outrageous statements every day,” Ramesh said, adding, “I think the Assam CM is boyish, immature.” Sarma hit back asking who Jairam Ramesh was. “Is he someone who lives in Assam? Who is he? I have no idea.” Sarma said.