Raijor Dal MLA Akhil Gogoi on Monday staged another symbolic protest outside the Assam Legislative Assembly during the ongoing Budget Session, demanding the release of tribal leader Aditya Rabha and farmers’ leader Pranab Doley.
The Sivasagar legislator wore a black shirt and black mask while carrying placards, alleging that the two leaders had been arrested for opposing the Assam government’s alleged move to hand over land to large corporate groups.
Speaking to reporters, Gogoi claimed the arrests were intended to suppress voices protesting against land policies affecting indigenous communities. He said Rabha and Doley had opposed what he described as the transfer of Assam’s land to “big corporate houses.”
He asserted that tribal belts and blocks are the strongest safeguards for the state’s indigenous people and said his party would not allow land belonging to indigenous communities to be handed over. He added that wearing black outside the Assembly was a mark of protest and a demand for the immediate release of the two leaders.
Responding to questions about his continued demonstrations during the Budget Session, Gogoi said he has been consistently raising the issue of Guwahati’s recurring artificial floods since the session began.
He recalled that on the opening day of the Budget Session, he and fellow Raijor Dal MLA Mahbubul Haque, popularly known as Mukhtar, had worn life jackets to highlight the city’s flood situation.
Criticising the government, Gogoi said the Chief Minister had failed to resolve Guwahati’s artificial flooding despite being in power for many years. He called for a comprehensive drainage project to permanently address flash floods in the city.
The MLA also said that his home constituency of Sivasagar continues to experience artificial flooding and urged the government to implement a similar comprehensive drainage and flood management project there.
Gogoi has been staging a series of symbolic protests outside the Assembly throughout the ongoing Budget Session, highlighting issues such as urban flooding, land rights and the arrest of activists.
