Expelled Youth Cong leader stages protest in Sivasagar, seeks justice

Dibrugarh: Expelled Assam Youth Congress president Angkita Dutta staged a sit-in at Amguri in Sivasagar district on Thursday as Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra that entered Assam from Nagaland. Dutta (35), who is seeking justice and reinstatement within the party, has planned her protest along the route of Rahul’s yatra, leaving the top brass of the state Congress embarassed. During Thursday’s stir, many Congress workers joined Dutta, expressing solidarity with her and displaying placards of “Nyay for Angkita” and “Justice for Angkita”. However, Dutta did not get an opportunity to meet Rahul as his convoy drove past the protest site.Dutta was expelled from the party’s primary membership for six years for alleged anti-party activities in April, 2023. “I came here to seek nyay (justice) because Rahul ji gave me a ray of hope when he embarked upon his Nyay Yatra. I will submit a memorandum to Rahul Gandhi seeking justice and reinstatement in the party, which will be signed by people who are supporting me in this journey to get justice. I was expelled from the party because I sought justice against an oppressor. As Rahul ji has come to Assam, I believe he will give me nyay. I have been in exile for the past 10 months and have not joined any party. Today, I am hopeful that I will get justice."The former Assam Youth Congress president’s expulsion followed her public accusations against Srinivas BV, the national president of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), whom she labelled as “sexist and chauvinistic.” Dutta had also filed a police complaint against Srinivas, accusing him of harassment and manhandling. Her grievances extend beyond Srinivas BV, reaching the higher echelons of the party leadership, as she claimed that despite informing Rahul and other senior leaders about the harassment and gender discrimination she faced, no inquiry was initiated by the party.Dutta, who hails from a family with four generations of Congress members, had actively participated in the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul last year. Her father, Anjan Dutta, was the president of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) and served as minister of transport, industries and public enterprises before passing away at AIIMS, New Delhi in 2016 at the age of 64. Her grandfather, Thaneswar Dutta, supported Indira Gandhi during the Congress split in 1978 and contested as a Congress candidate from Sivasagar legislative assembly constituency the same year.