Former Union Minister and senior BJP leader Rajen Gohain on Friday tendered his resignation from the cabinet rank protesting against the delimitation process of the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam.
While resigning from the cabinet rank, Gohain said, “The Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency has been handed over to the other party. Only stating that we do not need the votes of Miya community is not enough. On several occasions, I expressed my dissatisfaction on the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat and informed the chief minister about the same but to no avail. He only says that he will preserve the culture of Assamese community and Hindutva but doesn’t shows in action.”
“I am not going against the party as we built it with our sweat and blood,” he added.
Speaking on the leadership of state BJP chief, Gohain said, “I will not say that Bhabesh Kalita is not capable, however, he unable to take any decision independently.”
Meanwhile, in the letter addressed to the chief minister, he said, “Despite having numerous rounds of discussion with you I am afraid that my concerns and my deep dissatisfaction on the way the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency has been constituted did not bring any change whatsoever.”
“I feel betrayed and almost disrespected that a senior member like myself was not heard by its own party leaders of a genuine concern for the party’s own benefit,” Gohain said.
“I have been a very obedient soldier of the party for more than 25 years also representing the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency as Member of Parliament (MP) for 4 CONSECUTIVE TERMS which is a span of 20 years and I think my experience on this matter should have been counted for and my concerns for the identity of my people should be respected,” he added.
Stating the reasons behind his resignation, Gohain further said, “I want to emphasize that this a deeply personal decision that I have taken along. I will, as always, remain loyal to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).”
