More than 30,000 people gathered in Assam's Nalbari town on Tuesday for a rally organised under the banner of Jan Jagaran Samdal, with participants expressing support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The rally drew a large number of young men and women and was attended by Assam Cabinet Minister and Nalbari MLA Jayanta Malla Baruah, Assam BJP president Dilip Saikia, state BJP organising secretary Ravindra Raju and other party leaders and legislators.
According to the organisers, more than 30,000 people attended the gathering. The figure could not be independently verified.
Participants raised issues including employment, education, infrastructure development, cultural identity and electoral roll revision. The rally also saw young supporters defend the BJP-led governments against the perception that Gen-Z voters are increasingly opposed to the ruling party.
Jayanta Malla Baruah Calls For SIR Every Five Years
Addressing the gathering, Jayanta Malla Baruah called for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls every five years, arguing that Assam's history of agitation against illegal immigration made the exercise particularly important for the state.
"The youth of Assam have come out; the women of Assam have come out. Everyone has been observing over the past few days that work is being done to destabilise India," Baruah said.
The minister accused the Congress and other groups of working against the country's interests and alleged that they were receiving support from foreign forces.
On electoral roll revision, Baruah said no foreign national should remain on Assam's voter list.
"Everyone wants an SIR in Assam. Not a single foreigner's name should remain on Assam's voter list," he said.
Referring to the six-year Assam Agitation against illegal immigration, Baruah urged the Election Commission to ensure that electoral rolls were scrutinised properly.
Minister Targets Rahul Gandhi Over EVM Debate
Baruah also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the opposition over allegations of irregularities involving electronic voting machines (EVMs) and demands for a return to ballot paper voting.
"Congress never stands with the public, which is why they keep losing. And after losing, they blame EVMs, sometimes ballot papers, or make other excuses," he said.
Referring to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's recent remarks on ballot paper elections, Baruah said the Congress should be prepared to contest elections under that system if it believed EVMs were responsible for its defeats.
"Our Chief Minister has clearly said: 'Fine, wherever you won, resign from there. We will also resign, and let's see an election conducted through ballot paper. Let's see who stands where,'" Baruah said.
The minister also targeted those who had protested against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), drawing parallels between the protesters, Congress and groups he described as ideological Naxals.
"Whether it is CAA protesters, intellectual Naxals, or Congress—they are all essentially the same," he said.
Baruah also alleged that these groups received foreign assistance.
"The Real Gan-z Is Standing Right Here"
Young people were among the prominent participants at the rally, with some expressing support for the BJP-led governments over their policies on employment, infrastructure and development.
Bidita Bhattacharya, a young participant, said the gathering was intended to demonstrate support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government's approach to electoral roll revision.
"Together, we will give strength to Modi-ji. 'Modi-ji, move forward, we are with you.' We urge him to pursue this firmly, again and again. The Election Commission must carry out such an exercise," Bhattacharya said.
She also criticised Rahul Gandhi and the opposition, accusing them of aligning with what she described as anti-national elements.
"They are anti-nationals—whether it is these ideological Naxals, Rahul Gandhi, or his entire team, they are aligned with anti-nationalist elements. They are working to harm India, and we will never let that succeed," she said.
Responding to the perception that young voters were turning against the BJP, Bhattacharya said the participants at the rally represented another section of the younger generation.
"What you are seeing as 'Gen-Z' here and there is not the real Gen-Z. The real Gen-Z is standing right here—look at this new generation! This is the true youth and new generation," she said.
Bhattacharya said preserving Assam's cultural identity and heritage was important to young people in the state.
"The people of Assam and this new generation know that Indian culture must be taken forward. We cannot carry forward imported foreign culture; we must take forward our own heritage and civilisation," she said.
"In the name of freedom, destroying our culture will never be accepted by the youth of India or the youth of Assam. We will protect our culture and civilisation," she added.
Other participants also cited employment opportunities, government recruitment, medical colleges, infrastructure projects and efforts to attract industries as reasons for supporting the state government.
The gathering comes amid a wider political debate over young voters' attitudes towards the BJP-led governments. The views expressed by participants at the Nalbari rally, however, represent those who attended the event and do not establish the political preferences of Gen-Z across Assam.
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