Cong accuses BJP of breaking promises made to Assam’s tea community

Dibrugarh: All India Congress Committee (AICC) media coordinators Neelabh Shukla and Harmeet Baweja criticised the BJP govt on Tuesday for failing to fulfill its decade-old promise of granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to Assam’s tea community, calling it a pattern of broken commitments that has forced communities to take to the streets.Speaking at an “exchange of views” interaction programme held at Rajiv Bhavan auditorium in Dibrugarh, the AICC media cell coordinators addressed journalists about the party’s rebuilding efforts and the BJP’s unfulfilled promises.The event came just a day after massive protest demonstrations by tea community organisations in Dibrugarh, demanding ST status – a promise the BJP made during the 2014 general elections.“BJP had promised the tea community people during the 2014 elections that they would be granted ST status within a hundred days. But even after 10 years, they have not fulfilled their promise. Because of this, the tea community people are being forced to take to the streets,” Shukla said.He pointed out that five other indigenous communities in Assam have similarly been denied the ST status despite BJP’s commitments.

“BJP only wants to shine its politics by spreading a web of illusion and sowing seeds of hatred in the name of religion. But this won’t work anymore,” he said.Discussing Congress’s revival strategy, the leaders emphasised the party’s grassroots approach under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership. “Rahul fulfills the promises he makes. He talks about issues, not hatred,” Baweja said.She added that Congress would focus on critical issues affecting common people, including employment, development, erosion, and floods ahead of the 2026 Assam Assembly elections.“Whenever a question is raised to them, they start deflecting it to Congress. Why didn’t they do it in ten years? They will have to answer this to the common public,” she said.The interaction programme focused on strengthening organisational connections with grassroots workers and engaging directly with public concerns.