Tarun Gogoi threatens to ban Subramanian Swamy's entry into Assam

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Sunday said the government would consider banning entry of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy into the state after his reported remark that "mosques are mere buildings and can be demolished."

"His comments are completely insulting for a community. We will take action. If he continues to talk like this, we will ban his entry into Assam," Gogoi said on the sidelines of a function in Jorhat.

Noting that Swamy has been making controversial comments, Gogoi wondered why the BJP was not taking any action against him. Meanwhile, the Assam Police has registered an FIR against Swamy at Latasil police station in Guwahati under relevant sections of the IPC on a complaint filed by Chatra Mukti Sangram Samiti, the students wing of Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS).

KMSS has demanded immediate ban on Swamy's entry into the state "so that there is no communal tension in Assam." Cutting across political lines, various organisations and parties have condemned remarks of the senior BJP leader.

All Assam Students' Union (AASU), All Assam Minority Students Union (AAMSU), All Bodoland Minority Students' Union (ABMSU) along with other student bodies strongly condemned the remarks and burnt effigies of Swamy and Assam BJP president Siddhartha Bhattacharya in Guwahati and Kokrajhar.

In a damage control mode, Bhattacharya said Swamy's comments are "his personal views and the party does not endorse them". "We will also inform the central leadership about his comments," he added.