Cong Yatra in Assam; Rahul denied nod to visit saint birthplace

Nagaon/Morigaon: The Congress' Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Assam was marked with high drama on Monday, as Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to proceed towards the birthplace of iconic Vaishnav saint Srimanta Sankardeva at Batadrava in Nagaon, besides being barred from holding a meeting in Morigaon district.

As a consequence, the fifth day of the Yatra in the state did not proceed as per the programme chalked out by the party in the two districts. In the evening, Gandhi and his entourage entered Meghalaya.

AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi exerted pressure on the Assam government to prevent Gandhi from visiting the birthplace of Srimant Sankardeva.

Sankardeva is an Assamese saintscholar, social-religious reformer, poet, playwright and a towering figure in the cultural and religious history of Assam from the 15th-16th century.

Gandhi had left for the Sattra in the morning but was stopped at Haibargaon, around 17 km away, prompted him and other party leaders to sit on a dharna.

The Sri Sankardeva Sattra authorities on Sunday announced that they will not allow Gandhi to visit the sattra before 3 pm on January 22, after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said he requested Gandhi not to visit it. (PTI)