Assam Governor draws flake for terming Lachit as 'saviour of Hindus'

Assam Governor Banowarilal Purohit on Wednesday drew flak from the opposition Congress for terming Ahom general Lachit Borphukan as a "saviour of Hindutva".

Condemning the statement of the Governor, the Congress urged him to study about the national heroes of Assam before speaking about them.

"The Governor tried to project Assam's national hero Lachit Borphukan as a saviour of Hindutva and a spokesman of the Hindus. There can be two reasons behind this - first he lacks knowledge about the history and culture of Assam and secondly he made the statement as part of a greater plan of the RSS to twist the history of the state," said party spokesperson Rituparna Konwar.

"The Governor must know that the very essence of Assam's nationalism is the unity in diversity here, peace and brotherhood among different communities. There is no space for religious orthodoxy here and the state had never witnessed religious eccentricities between Hindus and Muslims like other parts of the country," he added.

Terming Purohit's statement as an "insult" to the great Ahom general, Konwar also asked the Governor to study about Ismail Siddiqui alias Bagh Hazarika, another great compatriot of Lachit Borphukan who also fought against the Mughals.

Purohit, while visiting the Lachit Moidam (crematorium and memorial) at Lahdoigarh in Jorhat district, on Tuesday praised the legendary general who fought and defeated the Mughals as a "saviour of Hindutva".

"The name of Lachit Borphukan is written in the pages of history with golden words. He struggled courageously against the Mughals along with his forces. In fact, it is because of Lachit Borphukan and other like him that Hindutva had been saved here," he had said.

The incident came less than a month after the Rastriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) drew flak for organizing a training session at Kareng Ghar, a historical monument dating back to Ahom era and shouting slogans inside the monument.

--IANS

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