GUWAHATI: After kicking up a storm by “generalising” the Ahoms with her vague “Mr Gogoi” jibe, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra on Friday clarified she had alluded to Rajya Sabha member Ranjan Gogoi.
“Just for those sanghis twisting tweet to say I targeted all Gogois let me spell it out: Mister Ranjan Gogoi. Honourable MP, Rajya Sabha,” she tweeted.
Ranjan Gogoi, a former Chief Justice of India, hails from Assam and belongs to the Ahom community that contributed immensely to Assam and the country. The Ahoms felt insulted by the MP’s comment.
What triggered the brouhaha was a tweet by Moitra on Thursday to attack the BJP-led union government over the compilation of words deemed unfit for use in Parliament.
“My first of new twitter series on replacements for unparliamentary words. Banned word - Sexual Harassment. Replacement - Mr. Gogoi,” the MP had written on the microblogging site.
It, however, triggered outrage in Assam with people threatening legal action against her. Some asked her to apologize.
Jagadish Bhuyan, who is a leader of the political party Assam Jatiya Parishad, advised her to remove “Mr Gogoi” from the tweet.
“Gogoi is the surname of a very important community in Assam. You might not be aware of this. You have made a very derogatory sense. You may write whatever you want, but no defamatory words that reflect on the entire community. Please remove only the phrase Mr. Gogoi,” Bhuyan had advised her.
Another Twitter user, Bhaskar Papukan Gogoi, reacted, “I am a Gogoi. How dare you insult our Ahom community? Do you mean all of us are sexual predators? Get ready to be sued.”
Yet another user wrote, “Gogoi is an Assamese Surname - the longest serving Assam CM is also one Mr Gogoi, late Tarun Gogoi. Many people with surname Gogoi have contributed to the nation's growth in every sector. You are mocking Assam and the Assamese people with this tweet.”
Utpal Borpujari, who is a national award-winning filmmaker and film critic had asked, “Who is this Mr Gogoi? Please give the complete name if you have a specific person in mind. Else, it’s a slur on all the Gogois. Yes, the list of ‘unparliamentary’ words is ridiculous, but that can be opposed without being equally ridiculous.”