Guwahati: Congress on Wednesday accused the BJP govt in Assam of running a “Bunty-Babli style govt” and staged a symbolic “lie detector test” to attack the party’s manifesto promises and chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s record.At a press conference at the Congress headquarters, AICC media department chairman Pawan Khera questioned BJP’s assurances on jobs, floods, corruption, wages and tribal status for six communities. A symbolic lie detector machine placed before journalists flashed a “red light” after each question, which the Congress said represented false promises.Without naming the chief minister and his wife, Khera referred to them as “Bunty and Babli” and said, “Bunty-Babli Part-1 is currently running in Assam and the public will have to ensure that Part-2 does not come. The film should not be allowed to release again in the state.”Khera said BJP had repeatedly promised since 2016 to grant tribal status to six communities, but the issue was missing from its latest manifesto. He alleged that the party had made false promises across sectors.On employment, Khera said only 19% of people in Assam have regular salaried jobs and urban unemployment has reached 25%. He claimed around 21 lakh people had registered at employment offices about three years ago and that the number had since risen, alleging that the government was not making the data public.Targeting BJP on floods, Khera said Assam continues to face severe flooding every year, affecting 8 to 10 lakh people. He said the party had failed to deliver on its repeated promise of a “flood-free Assam” despite having a “double engine” and “triple engine” govt.On corruption, Khera said BJP had promised a corruption-free Assam but alleged that “syndicate raj” was operating in the state. He said the symbolic lie detector again flashed red when asked whether the Chief Minister was corruption-free.Khera also said BJP had failed to fulfil its promise to raise wages even after 10 years and alleged that new labour laws had worsened workers’ conditions.On deportation, Khera compared the UPA and BJP govts, saying, “between 2005 and 2013, the Congress govt deported 88,792 foreigners, while under BJP rule, according to the Home Ministry, only 2,566 were deported.” He urged people to compare the two governments.“BJP raises the Bangladesh issue only for votes,” Khera alleged.He further claimed that 43% of children in Assam are not developing normally and 17% are suffering from weight-related problems. He described maternal health indicators as alarming and alleged that around 8,000 schools, including primary schools, had been shut since 2016.
