Kokrajhar turnout leaves Modi awed

Kokrajhar/Guwahati: Prime Minister Narendra Modi attracted record crowds in both Kokrajhar and Guwahati in spite of a 12-hour bandh called by Sanmilita Janagosthiya Ekya Manch (SJEM), a confederation of non-Bodo organizations, to stop people from attending his rally in Bodoland on Tuesday.
More than a hundred thousand Bengali-speaking Muslims and tribal Bodos left behind their decades-old rivalry to hear Modi speak on development at the rally organized by BJP's new-found ally Bodo People's Front (BPF).The turnout prompted Modi to admit that he had never seen a bigger crowd.
"Main desh mein aur Assam mein kayi jagah pe gaya hoon, lekin aisa nazara kabhi nahi dekha (I have travelled to various places in the country and in Assam, but I have never seen such a spectacle anywhere)," Modi said at the beginning of his address in the volatile Bodo heartland.
In Guwahati, too, the Prime Minister addressed a huge rally.
President of BPF and chief of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Hagrama Mohilary also addressed the rally and said, "The main objective of BTC is to create an atmosphere that is conducive for Bodos and Muslims, as well as other communities, to live in peace and harmony." Mohilary, a former militant, has helmed the Bodoland autonomous council, set up under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, since its inception in 2001.
Survivor of the 2008 ethnic clashes between Bodos and Muslims, Matlib Ali (50), who came to Kokrajhar from Udalguri to hear the Prime Minister and was seated beside Bodo farmer Thaneswar Brahma, summed up the mood of the gathering.
"Both communities have realized the futility of bloody clashes for land or any other issue because both have suffered irreparable losses. The best option for us is to sit together and hear the Prime Minister speak of development," Ali said. Brahma did not differ.
The BJP sealed its electoral partnership with BPF in New Delhi on Sunday and said both parties would jointly fight the ruling Congress in the assembly election, likely to be held in April. The BPF, born out of the disbanded Bodo Liberation Tiger (BLT) rebel outfit in 2001, partnered Congress in the last assembly election.
The BJP-BPF show of strength also hit back at chief minister Tarun Gogoi for saying that the regional party was a small one and not worth the importance being attached to it by the Prime Minister.
According to an estimate by security agencies, the turnout at the rally was close to two lakh. "One lakh chairs were placed at the venue yesterday (Monday) and we had to bring an additional 30,000 chairs today. There were still several hundred people waiting outside the field," the official added.
More than 8,000 buses were requisitioned by BPF to bring people from all four districts under the Bodo Territorial Council (BTC) area to the venue. However, not a single poster, hoarding or banner urging people to come to the rally was found anywhere.
The dawn-to-dusk BTAD bandh called by SJEM, All Koch Rajbongshi Students' Union (AKRSU) and All BTC Minority Students' Union (ABMSU) had some impact. In Kokrajhar and its adjoining areas, however, it had no effect.
Activists prevented many vehicles from carrying supporters to Kokrajhar for the Prime Minister's rally on Tuesday morning. A section of bandh supporters burnt tyres on the roads to enforce the blockade. The Baksa Police detained some ABMSU protesters for burning Modi's effigies. The organization opposed the Prime Minister's visit and accused him of not working for the welfare of minority communities in the region. Business establishments remained shut in Chirang, Gossaigaon and Dhaligaon areas of BTAD. Classes were hit in educational institutes.
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters belonging to Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) staged a dharna at Amingaon in Guwahati against the Centre's stand on construction of mega dams in the northeast.