SHILLONG, MAR 8: In a surprise move, the opposition Congress on Friday boycotted the address by the Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy as a mark of protest against his recent “controversial” tweets on the Kashmiri people.
Roy was greeted with empty chairs from the opposition bench when all Congress members unanimously decided not to attend his ceremonial address during the first day of the Assembly’s Budget Session.
“He (Roy) had tweeted that all Kashmiri goods should be boycotted and people should not visit Kashmir… That is why the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) has decided that we boycott the Governor’s address today,” Opposition leader Mukul Sangma told reporters.
“Does it augur well for the nation when a person who is holding a constitutional post not less than a Governor of a state can engage in this kind of message which is capable of creating a riff amongst the citizens of the nation,” he asked.
The former chief minister also alleged that the Governor had tweeted this at a time when there were a lot of lynchings happening across the nation against Kashmiris following the incident in Kashmir.
Sangma reminded the Governor that the nation’s fight is against the terrorists and not against the community or against the people.
“Now, will such people like the Governor of Meghalaya if there is an event of any terrorist attack in the North East, tell the country now boycott the North East, boycott the goods of North East?” he asked.
The Congress leader further slammed the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his failure to take action against Roy.
“This is the kind of people who is dividing the nation… I must say immediately after this tweet the Prime Minister should have pulled up the Governor, he should have been removed from office in the best interest of the nation to send a strong message and to vindicate what he said to the country,” Sangma said.
Later when sought for his reaction on the action taken by the opposition members, Governor Tathagata Roy said, “So I see that they have done so. What can I do about it?”
Whether he regrets for making such tweets, the Governor however responded that he has nothing to say beyond what he had already stated on his tweets.
“I have already said that there is nothing further to be said beyond what I have said in my tweets,” Roy said.
Terming the protest by the opposition as “unfortunate”, chief minister Conrad K Sangma
Said, “You could be disagreeing with certain individual comment but here it is not about Tathagata Roy but it is about the Governor of Meghalaya and I think it was not good for the opposition to do that but decision is theirs and they have done it.”
By Our Reporter
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