Himanta Biswa Sarma. (Express Photo: Dasarath Deka/File) Himanta Biswa Sarma. (Express Photo: Dasarath Deka/File)

Senior Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said that if the BJP is not voted back to power, the “Pakistan Army or terrorists” could “attack” the “Indian Parliament and Assam Assembly” buildings, and India would not have the courage to retaliate.

Addressing an election rally in Kampur in Nagaon district, Sarma said: “If we do not bring Modi sarkar back to power in India and Assam again, the Pakistan Army or terrorists will probably come and attack the Indian Parliament and Assam Assembly, and the Prime Minister will not have the courage to retaliate.”

Saying the country needs a PM like Narendra Modi, he said the “new India” can retaliate, and has the courage to take necessary action against Pakistan.

Sarma, who holds multiple portfolios including Finance and Health, said that 130 people were arrested in Assam after the Pulwama terror attack for allegedly hailing Pakistan on social media. “Just think about it, that in Assam we have given birth to such power, that they have the courage to write ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ on social media. How did this happen,” he said.

He accused the Congress of “surrendering” itself to people “who write Pakistan Zindabad” on social media.

“If we are not united under the leadership of the BJP, then in Assam, one day, these people who say ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ will destroy our civilisation and culture. And that is why our war is not only for development — it is politics of identity with politics of development. On the one hand, we will fight for development, and on the other, we will fight to protect our identity, land and base,” he said.

He said the “heart of the Na-Axomiya (the new Assamese)” —a term used for Bengali-origin Muslims who declare Assamese as their mother tongue in the language census — is “with Pakistan, not with India”. “The BJP has said clearly that along with development, we will adopt a zero tolerance policy towards Pakistani agents hiding among us in Assam,” said Sarma.

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