In response to a widely circulated video showing him copying a note onto a visitor's logbook, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Tuesday that...
Digital Desk: In response to a widely circulated video showing him copying a note onto a visitor's logbook, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Tuesday that he was trying to learn Hindi and English.
In the video clip, shared by a Twitter user named Roshan Rai, CM Sarma can be seen copying a paragraph from a notebook and writing in a visitors' logbook. A caption accompanying the video read: "Copy Paste BJP CM." Rai shared the video with a jibe, "Presenting the CM of Assam who can't even write a paragraph in a visitor's book without copying."
Reacting to it, CM Sarma tweeted, "I went to an Assamese medium school and am trying my best to learn Hindi and English in my own humble way. I must admit that I don't know English and Hindi very well, and I have no hesitation in admitting it." Many of his supporters praised him for confessing to not knowing English or Hindi, and they praised the Assam CM for having the "courage" to admit his weakness and work on it.
Some, however, pointed out that Sarma was a PhD holder and a practising lawyer at the Gauhati High Court before becoming an MLA. Rai, too, sought to dismiss Sarma's acceptance of not knowing English by sharing an old film of the Assam CM speaking fluently in the language.
Rai further said, "Assamese is a beautiful language, the visitor's book would have looked much better with a note in Assamese. There was no compulsion of Writing it only in English or Hindi, but copying something is unbecoming of a leader of your stature. Leaders are meant to inspire innovation, not copy."
This comes just two days after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal attacked Himanta Biswa Sarma, claiming he was unfamiliar with the Assamese culture. Kejriwal said, "Assamese people know how to treat people. They understand kindness. They do not threaten individuals with jail. I urge Himanta Babu to study about local culture." Additionally, he extended Sarma an invitation to his house for tea and lunch.
Since Kejriwal allegedly charged Sarma with corruption, the two chief ministers have been locked in a war of words. In response, Sarma referred to Kejriwal as a "coward" for only speaking in the assembly and not outside of it. Later, Kejriwal raised the problem of unemployment and exam paper leaks in Assam, to which Sarma responded that Kejriwal's claims were false and that paper leaks had been reported in the AAP-led Punjab as well.
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