ITANAGAR, 22 Sep: The Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) sharply criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ignoring burning issues of Arunachal during his visit here on Monday.
The APCC said in a press statement that the prime minister indulged in self-praise and hollow rhetoric and used the event to attack the Congress party instead of addressing the people’s concerns. The party said that Arunachal and its people deserve concrete announcements.
The APCC said the prime minister forgot the political journey or transitional history of Arunachal, which it said has been built upon the leadership and developmental legacy of the Congress party,emerging right from the NEFA days to modern Arunachal.
“The state’s modern history is deeply tied to successive Congress prime ministers of India, each of whom contributed significantly to its political identity, infrastructure, and protection of indigenous rights,” the party said in a press statement said.
Highlighting the contribution made by former Congress prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and Dr Manmohan Singh, the party stated: “Since India’s independence, it is the Congress party that has nurtured, protected, and built Arunachal Pradesh into what it is today.”
“Arunachal Pradesh stands today because of the vision of Congress leaders – from Pandit Nehru to Dr Manmohan Singh. Congress will continue to protect Arunachal’s identity, indigenous rights, and development future,” the party said.
It said that every milestone in the political, economic, and social history of Arunachal carries the imprint of Congress leaderships.
“Nehru created the North-East Frontier Agency in 1954, carving it out of Assam to give special administrative focus to the frontier region,” the party said, adding that the Panchsheel policy for tribals was Nehru’s guiding philosophy for the administration and development of tribal communities in India.
The APCC said that Nehru gave special attention to border infrastructure and initiated establishment of roads, administrative outposts, and schools in the frontier areas.
“Nehru declared Arunachal a strategic priority and emphasized its defence importance after the 1962 war with China,” it said.
On the other hand, the party said, Indira Gandhi converted the NEFA into the union territory of Arunachal Pradesh on 20 January, 1972 and had introduced the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly and council of ministers in 1975, preparing the ground for democracy, and established the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission to promote local administration.
It said that Rajiv Gandhi fulfilled the aspiration of the people of the state by granting full-fledged statehood to Arunachal on 20 February, 1987.
“Rajiv Gandhi gave special attention to youths and education, expanded higher education institutions, including colleges, vocational institutes, and ITIs.”
“He undertook technology and connectivity for Arunachal Pradesh and promoted telecommunications and rural electrification in the state. He gifted the decentralisation of powers, encouraged panchayati raj in tribal belts to empower grassroots democracy,” the party said.
Highlighting the contribution of Dr Singh to the state’s development, the party said he had announced a Rs 24,000-crore special development package during his visit to Itanagar, covering roads, hydropower, education, health, and employment. Major infrastructure projects, such as the Trans-Arunachal Highway, district highways across the state, greenfield airport/Donyi Polo Airport, railway line connection up to Naharlagun, the state civil secretariat, district mini civil secretariats, district sports stadiums, etc, were taken up under the package, it said.
The APCC said Dr Singh established Rajiv Gandhi University (formerly Arunachal University) and various other professional institutes. On the health and social welfare sector, he expanded hospitals, rural health missions, and welfare schemes like MGNREGA and NRHM to benefit tribal villages, signed MoUs for harnessing hydropower potential, making Arunachal the “powerhouse of India,” the statement said.
“It was under Congress leadership that Arunachal Pradesh attained statehood, Article 371H protection, and safeguards for indigenous rights,” the statement said.
The party claimed that the BJP government made little or negligible contribution, except inaugurating or laying foundation stones for projects originally initiated by the Congress.
Giving a brief account of the failures of the BJP rule during the last 10 years, the APCC said, “The BJP has ruled both Delhi and Itanagar with a so-called ‘double engine government’. Yet the people of Arunachal Pradesh still suffer from rising unemployment and lack of job opportunities, poor health and education infrastructure, neglect of flood control and disaster management, incomplete projects and hollow promises, continued Chinese incursions and neglect of border villages.”
“If PM Modi has truly transformed Arunachal, why are our youths still migrating for jobs? Why are our border villages still without basic facilities?” the APCC questioned.
The APCC said that the BJP government turned PM Modi’s official programme into an election campaign.
“The entire Itanagar Capital Region was covered with BJP flags. State government employees were directed to attend the BJP rally. Crores of state government exchequer money was used for the BJP’s programme, thousands of daily-wage labourers were hired to attend the meeting,” the statement said.
“Congress doesn’t believe in publicity or headline politics. We believe in real development that touches people’s lives,” the APCC said, demanding that the prime minister stop using Arunachal as a political stage for attacking the Congress and instead announce genuine development packages, protectindigenous rights, and take concrete measures for border security.
