Guwahati, Jan 17: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said he doesn’t want to be a VIP because he doesn’t want VIP treatment imposed on him.
Talking to media persons, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “Don’t make me VIP. If I don’t want VIP treatment then what is the problem with others. Some are saying that IAS, IPS officers should be scolded. What they want to say, a peon should be scolded but not an IAS. What type of mentality is this? If someone does bad work then he or she should be scolded. If a Chief Minister does bad work, he should also face criticism.”
He said, “Many people scolded us in Facebook and social media. We faced criticism in social media many a times. It is what Democracy is.”
On the other hand, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Bhupen Bora on Monday said he will write to the IAS Officers’ Association asking why they are keeping mum regarding chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s ‘insult’ of their colleague.
While addressing a press conference, Bora questioned how Sarma, a political leader of the state, use such derogatory language to a top bureaucrat in front of the public.
Assam CM scolds DC for halting traffic for his visit
It needs to be mentioned here that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on January 15, 2022 had publicly scolded Nagaon Deputy Commissioner Nisarg Hivare for allegedly halting traffic on NH 127 for the Chief Minister’s convoy to pass. A video clip of the incident was shown on local TV news channels and went viral on social media, where it evoked mixed response from netizens.
The Nagaon district and police administration had blocked the movement of vehicular traffic near the Nagaon College as security measure for the Assam Chief Minister.
“I reprimanded officials concerned for halting traffic for me, despite clear direction not to create inconvenience for people during my visit. For over 15 minutes, the national highway was blocked including ambulances. This VIP culture is not acceptable in today’s Assam,” Sarma later said.
