'Like Mujibur Rahman': Congress After Nehru Statue Pulled Down In Assam

A 10-foot statue of India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was pulled down by unidentified vandals at Pailapool in Assam's Cachar district. The incident, caught on CCTV, has sparked a political row, with the Opposition Congress questioning the ruling BJP's silence over the act.

Morning walkers noticed the vandalised statue on Tuesday. "We immediately informed the police about it. Officials initially claimed that the statue fell on its own, but CCTV footage showed that a group vandalising it with the help of an excavator," Congress leader Pradeep Kumar Dey said on Wednesday.

The statue was installed in 2000 in front of Nehru College, an institution established in 1965. Congress leader Pradeep Kumar Dey said that the area has a long-standing tradition of honouring the first Prime Minister, dating back to the establishment of a high school in Nehru's name in 1953.

"We have a great culture of honouring the first Prime Minister here," Dey said on Wednesday, adding that the 2000 installation was attended by late Union Minister Santosh Mohan Dev and former state minister Dinesh Prasad Goala.

The Congress has lodged a First Information Report (FIR) regarding the incident. Local police officer Shankar Dayal confirmed that a case has been filed and the excavator seen in the footage has been seized.

"We have digital evidence, and our teams are working to identify the individuals involved. Once identified, the accused will be arrested," Dayal stated.

Former Congress district chief Abhijit Paul likened the act to the 2024 demolition of statues of Bangladesh's founding leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

"Vandalising his statue is shameful. Nehru was a freedom fighter who shaped India's future," Paul said. "Some people dislike Nehru for their political beliefs, but vandalising his statue reminds me of how the statues of the father of Bangladesh were vandalised after Hasina's fall. The idea behind both is the same."

The Congress also criticised local BJP lawmaker and minister Kaushik Rai, in whose constituency the incident occurred, for failing to issue a statement. "The area comes under BJP lawmaker Kaushik Rai's constituency. Rai is a minister but has not spoken a word against it," Paul said.

While Rai did not respond to calls, other BJP leaders have so far refused to comment on the matter.