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A novel protest in Guwahati

By Sushanta Talukdar

GUWAHATI, MAY 19 . The Assam Panchayat and Rural Development Minister, Ripun Bora, today tonsured his head to lead the State Congress workers in staging a protest against Bharatiya Janata Party's opposition to Sonia Gandhi becoming the Prime Minister even as the workers of the ruling party were overjoyed by the news of Manmohan Singh, former Union Finance Minister and a Rajya Sabha MP from the State, being named as the next Prime Minister.

Mr. Bora staged his novel protest at Rajiv Bhawan -- the PCC headquarters here -- in the presence of senior party leaders and activists of the Assam Pradesh Youth Congress amid shouting of slogans against BJP leaders L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharati. One of the PCC secretaries, J.K. Pande, and PCC spokesman, Kishore Bhattcharyya, also tonsured their head.

Mr. Bora told media persons that he had decided to stage the protest as senior BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj, Govindacharya and Uma Bharati had shown disrespect to the mandate of the people in favour of Congress president Sonia Gandhi to lead a secular government at the Centre. Angry Congress workers shouted slogans against BJP leaders.

The Minister, however, clarified that the election of Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister in the event of Sonia Gandhi naming him as her nominee for the country's top post would be certainly welcome by each and every Congress worker in the State as he represents Assam in Rajya Sabha. "Our protest is to express the sentiment and resentment of the people against the undemocratic action of the BJP leaders in questioning the popular mandate received by Sonia Gandhi," he added.

While Mr. Bora was staging the protest, senior Cabinet Minister Hemoprova Saikia was busy playing the landlord of the Prime Minister-designate as media persons flocked to Mr. Singh'a rented house at Nandan Nagar of Sarumataria, a quiet locality very near to the State Capital. It was in 1991 when Mr. Singh was elected for the first time to the Rajya Sabha from Assam that Hemoprova Saikia's husband and former Chief Minister late Hiteswar Saikia rented this house to the former Union Finance Minister.

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