GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday dismissed the claim of Opposition parties that the state government is shelling out money on the Eknath Shinde-led dissident Shiv Sena MLAs from Maharashtra to take care of their food and accommodation. They have been holed up at a five-star hotel in Guwahati since Wednesday. Sarma told journalists that the Assam government is not spending anything on them.
“Why should the Assam government settle their hotel bills? Assam is not spending anything on them. File an RTI, you will know it,” he said, adding, “I don’t think the Maharashtra MLAs are facing such a difficulty that we have to take care of their hotel expenses.” Sarma said he is not following Maharashtra politics, stating it is “useless for a ginger trader to keep track of the ship”.
To a question about some Assam BJP leaders frequenting the hotel, Sarma said there was no harm in it. “BJP leaders go to other hotels as well. There is no bar on them. I will also go and have tea,” he said. Akhil Gogoi, the chief of Raijor Dal, demanded that the MLAs return, but Sarma accused the activist-turned-politician of attempting to render the Assamese youth jobless.
“Assamese boys work at the hotel. He wants its business to suffer so that people lose their jobs and resort to agitation and he can gain from it,” the CM said. Talking about the floods, Sarma said the state government is carrying out the relief and rescue operations with central funds. “All that we are doing to fight the flood is with central funds. We did not have to spend the state’s funds so far,” he said, in the backdrop of the criticism being directed at the Centre for not announcing any flood relief package for Assam.