Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday hit out at his former colleague Rahul Gandhi and said, “Karma has finally caught up to him.” He said Rahul Gandhi could have apologised or withdrawn the comments for which he was sentenced by a Surat court.
"Karma eventually caught up with him. Rahul Gandhi himself tore the ordinance against immediate disqualification,” the former Congressman said alleging that “Rahul Gandhi’s comments were intentional and he abused the OBC community.”
In a rare admission, Himanta Sarma said, “A slip of tongue sometimes happens and we have experienced it too, but we issue a statement apologizing for what we say, stating that it was unintentional. Gandhi could have done the same and the matter would have ended there”, Sarma said on the sidelines of a programme in Guwahati.
My interaction with media on recent developments regarding the court verdict against Rahul Gandhi. pic.twitter.com/GCaUboyy63— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) March 25, 2023
Speaking about Rahul’s disqualification, the CM said, “Rahul Gandhi has not been disqualified by the GoI. He has been convicted by the court because in his speech he used unparliamentary, defamatory words against the OBC community. As a consequence of the pronouncement of the Court, he has been disqualified.”
He also said that this was a judicial process and nothing political. According to Sarma, the judgement was not given in a hurry, like in one or two months. It was delivered after prolonged deliberation.
He said that after Rahul Gandhi’s Karnataka election speech nearly five years ago, cases were lodged against him in various parts of the country, including one in Arunachal Pradesh as well.
However, the Assam Chief Minister said that the Congress leader could approach the higher court, challenging the verdict.
Rahul-Himanta Tiff
In Ghulam Nabi Azad’s autobiography “Azaad”, the former Congress veteran has written about the differences between the party and Himanta Sarma at the time.
“Rahul told us bluntly that there would be no change in leadership. We pointed out to him (Rahul) that Himanta had the majority of MLAs and would rebel and quit the party. ‘Let him go,’ Rahul said. The meeting was over," Azad, 74, says in his autobiography that will release next month.
Sarma, who went on to join the BJP and is the chief minister of Assam, was an important Congress strategist. Ten MLAs followed him when he quit the party in September 2015 over differences with the Congress leadership in Assam.
Azad, who is chairperson of the newly formed Democratic Progressive Azad Party, says Rahul Gandhi “mismanaged" the Sarma episode.
Sarma, 54, was appointed chief minister in 2021, just five years after leaving the Congress, after he ensured a second consecutive win for the BJP in Assam.
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