Noted journalist Arnab Goswami Sunday said that it is important for legislators to put people first in their agenda. “We are all here because of the people. People should come first whether it is in politics or media,” said Goswami while addressing legislators on the topic: “Legislators and Relationship with Media” during the third phase of Sabal Bidhayak, a series of orientation programmes initiated by the Assam Assembly. The series that will continue on select days until January 2017 next year have been designed and coordinated by Guwahati based think-tank Centre for Development and Peace Studies.
Describing the quality of journalism Goswami said that Indian journalism is stronger than journalism elsewhere because the media here can question everything including religion, something not practiced by the western media. At the same time, Indian media is independent and secular- it can cover issues for instance as to why a woman cannot enter a place of worship. While in UK the media is very structured, in India it is not. Stating that his channel Times Now has broken six major scams so far and each case has been followed by the judiciary, he said that the media in India has kept the judiciary on its toes. Media in India has come a long way. Today’s media is an unusual media. It is confrontational unlike media in earlier days which had information but little impact.
“Politics is about taking responsibilities. Development follows when the media behaves responsibly and politicians too work responsibly,” he said. Terming the New Media as an Activist Media or Campaign driven Media, he said that today’s media followups news until there is response from the concerned quarters. He said that today journalists are no longer disseminators of information only, they have become activists. Media is a reflection of the changing country. Legislatures should open up new relations with the media and both should think about how they can work together and not how they can fight, he added.
Veteran politician and former minister Abdul Muhib Majumder highlighted the participants on procedural devices available to members to raise matters of urgent public importance on the floor of the house. Former Assam Chief Minister, Prafulla Kumar Mahanta also addressed the participants and spoke on Parliamentary etiquette, ethics, customs and conventions. He said that if legislators follow the rules and procedures of the Assembly, it will be beneficial both for them and the public.
Phani Bhushan Choudhry, who has been representing his constituency for the seventh consecutive term, threw light on general rules of procedures of the Assembly – questions, legislations and resolutions. He said that it is very important for a legislator to know how to put a question in the Assembly, which question is to be given priority and how to frame a question. According to him, the question must be focused and proposals should be such that it includes the problems and issues important for the stateas a whole apart from then problems of a particular constituency.
Speaking on the occasion Director, Indian Institute of Information Technology, Guwahati, Gautam Barua said that new and relevant courses should be introduced in the ITIs along with vocational courses for students who cannot pass tenth standard. State Minister for Water Resources Department, Science and Technology, Information Technology, Keshab Mahanta sensitized the legislators on the relationship between legislators and media and said that for legislators media is the medium to reach the masses. Senior journalist Samudra Gupta Kashyap stated that media and politics are inseparably related and while media plays the role of a watch dog, it also has its own responsibilities.
Vice Chairman of the State Planning Board Dipok Kumar Barthakur speaking on “Skilling and Regenerating Assam,” said that courses must be developed with an eye on the employability sectors of the region. He was of the opinion that a Skills University is necessary in the region to boost employment. In the programme that followed the Centre for Development and Peace Studies Executive Director Wasbir Hussain presented an overview of skill development initiatives in Assam. Intense interactions between the legislators and resource persons marked the sessions.
The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Wednesday submitted a detailed “Chargesheet 2026” against the BJP-led Assam government, symbolically placing it before what it termed the “People’s Court of Assam.” The chargesheet targets the government headed by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, covering the period from May 10, 2021 to February 18, 2026.
In a press briefing in Guwahati, APCC leaders alleged large-scale corruption, economic mismanagement, constitutional violations, and failure to protect the rights of indigenous communities. The document lists 20 major charges, including the alleged operation of a “syndicate raj,” accumulation of illegal wealth, rising public debt, and...
Shillong, February 16, 2026: The death toll in the devastating explosion at an illegal coal mine in East Jaintia Hills has risen to 33, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma confirmed on Monday during a suo-motu statement in the State Assembly.
The tragedy occurred on the morning of February 5 in the remote Mynsngat-Thangsko area, where an illegal “rat-hole” coal mine reportedly exploded, allegedly due to the unauthorized use of explosives inside narrow underground tunnels. The incident has triggered widespread outrage and prompted the state government to constitute a high-level Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
Initial rescue operations carried out by the NDRF, SDRF and...
Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president and MP Gaurav Gogoi on Sunday launched a sharp counter-offensive against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, calling the much-hyped SIT report a “super flop” and accusing the CM of staging six months of political drama to divert attention from land and corruption allegations.
Addressing a packed press conference at Rajiv Bhawan, Gogoi said the Chief Minister had kept the SIT report for six months, only to unveil it through a “manufactured spectacle” involving national media, which ultimately failed to produce a single piece of evidence against him. “He swung a mace in the air, but there was nothing in his hands,” Gogoi said.
Flanked by MPs...
A multi-crore dairy project at Sanbasa in Nazira has collapsed amid serious allegations of financial irregularities and internal mismanagement, dealing a severe blow to rural livelihoods in the area.
The Sundarpukhuri Dairy Cooperative Society, formed by local farmers under the initiative of Dr. Jagadish Barman, once served as a crucial source of income for over 245 Below Poverty Line (BPL) families. The cooperative reportedly contributed nearly ₹1 crore annually to the local rural economy.
As part of its expansion, the cooperative launched its own marketing network under the brand name “Kareng” and set up a milk pasteurization plant at Sanbasa village. However, internal disputes...
Guwahati: Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president and Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi on Sunday launched a sharp attack on Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma over a recent press conference, dismissing it as “worse than a C-grade cinema” and accusing the Chief Minister of making baseless and sensational claims.
The Chief Minister, however, maintained that the allegations involving Pakistani national Ali Tauqeer Sheikh and Elizabeth Gogoi—wife of Gaurav Gogoi—were serious in nature and should not be treated lightly.
Addressing the media, CM Sarma said the matter assumed greater significance as it involved a sitting Member of Parliament. “These are grave allegations. When a sitting MP, who...
Handique Girls’ College will confer the 3rd Rajabala Das National Award on noted author and senior journalist Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty, President of the Press Club of India, in recognition of her significant contributions to society and journalism. The award will be presented on March 8, 2026, at a special function to be held on the college campus.
On the occasion, the Rajabala Das Memorial Annual Lecture will be delivered by eminent journalist and thinker Prasanta Rajguru, Editor-in-Chief of Prag News.
Instituted in 2024, the Rajabala Das National Award is conferred annually on a personality of national stature who has made outstanding contributions to society. The award includes a...
Guwahati, 4 February: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Tuesday held a press conference at Rajiv Bhawan, during which party leaders made a series of allegations against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and launched an online platform to collect information related to their claims.
The press conference was attended by former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and Congress election observer Bhupesh Baghel, All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary in charge of Assam Jitendra Singh, APCC President Gaurav Gogoi, and other senior party leaders. During the event, a video titled “Who Is Himanta Biswa Sarma?” was released, followed by the launch of a QR-code-enabled template...
Guwahati, January 24: Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Gaurav Gogoi on Friday mounted a blistering attack on the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led BJP government, branding it a regime of “vote thieves, land thieves, cattle thieves and water thieves,” while addressing a massive public rally at Hatikholia Ground, Moranjana, near Rangia.
Addressing nearly 20,000 supporters, Gogoi raised what he termed the central political question before the people of Assam—“Who is Himanta Biswa Sarma?”—and said the Congress must now directly reach out to the masses. He called for the immediate formation of small outreach teams comprising youth and women to go door-to-door and explain the...
The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee on Friday launched the nationwide “Save MGNREGA Movement” in the state, opposing the Modi-led NDA government’s move to amend the MGNREGA Act and introduce a new law under the name “VB-G RAM G”.
As part of the first phase of the agitation, press conferences were held simultaneously at district headquarters across Assam, including Kamrup Metropolitan, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Charaideu, Hailakandi, Darrang and Baksa. District Congress Committee presidents and senior party leaders addressed the media.
In Guwahati, senior Pradesh Congress spokespersons Kushal Sharma, Rupak Das and Anita Devi addressed the press at the...
A strong call to unite the indigenous communities of Northeast India on a common platform was made at a roundtable discussion held on January 6 to mark the 21st death anniversary of noted nationalist leader Nibaran Bora. The discussion, titled “Crisis of Indigenous Peoples of Northeast India and Its Solutions”, resolved to carry forward Bora’s vision and ideology for safeguarding indigenous identity and rights.
The meeting was attended by representatives of several indigenous organisations from Assam and other Northeastern states. Uncompromising nationalist leader Hasibur Rahman, a close associate of the late leader, delivered the keynote address, highlighting the growing threat to the...
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