Amit Shah pats BJP-AGP for rhino conservation

Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday (April 2, 2026) patted the alliance of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) for ejecting encroachers from the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve and protecting the one-horned rhino.

Addressing a rally in central Assam’s Kaliabor for AGP candidate Keshab Mahanta, he slammed the Congress for failing to check infiltration and develop the State.

Mr. Shah said the Modi government signed more than 20 peace accords with extremist groups in Assam and brought over 10,000 insurgents to the mainstream to free the State from bombs and bullets. 

“What did the Congress do? It opened Assam to infiltrators,” the Home Minister said, insisting that the BJP was against the infiltrators, but not against Assam’s indigenous Muslims.

He said the Congress handed large swathes of Kaziranga National Park over to these infiltrators. “The BJP-AGP government cleared encroachment in Kaziranga and protected the rhinos, Assam’s pride, and boosted tourism,” he added.

Mr. Shah claimed Assam did not benefit much from years of Congress rule. “From 2004 to 2014, Assam had a Congress government, and the Manmohan Singh government was at the Centre. Assam gave India a Prime Minister, who gave Assam only ₹1.28 lakh crore of development funds in 10 years. The Narendra Modi government gave ₹9.78 lakh crore from 2014 to 2024,” he said.

Infra projects

Citing roads, bridges, medical and engineering colleges, and other infrastructure projects undertaken or completed in Assam during the last decade, the Home Minister highlighted a park built to honour the martyrs of the anti-infiltrator Assam Agitation (1979-85), and Bharat Ratna to Gopinath Bordoloi (Assam’s first Chief Minister) and music maestro Bhupen Hazarika as some of the achievements of the NDA government. 

“It is time to form an NDA government in Assam for the third time, with Himanta Biswa Sarma as the Chief Minister. The last 10 years of Assam under the NDA will be written in golden letters,” Mr. Shah said.