The campaign for the October 6 Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll in Assam has reached its climax with the last day of campaigning on Sunday. Voting for the prestigious seat will take place on October 6.
In the last lap, the political war of words is revolving around biryani, pulao, chicken and even dry fish, with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Congress MP Rakibul Hussain trading barbs on the campaign trail.
The exchange began after Sarma took a swipe at Hussain during an election rally, comparing the Congress leader to ‘Bakasura’, the mythological figure known for his enormous appetite. Sarma also alleged that Hussain eats meat and pulao several times a day and accused him of “digesting” money meant for government schemes.
Hussain hit back with sarcasm, saying he was born to enjoy biryani. “God sent me into this world to eat biryani and Allah made me wealthy when I was born,” Hussain said, taking a dig at the Chief Minister.
He further mocked Sarma over his alleged preference for “kata biscuit” or rusk, saying those who survive on such food would not understand the difference between pulao and biryani.
Hussain also joked about his childhood, saying that while babies normally drink their mother’s milk after birth, he was apparently born eating chicken biryani.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma campaigning in Nagaon
Sarma then escalated the exchange at an election rally in Nagaon. “Those who are born to drink their mother’s milk are human beings, and those born to eat biryani are animals,” Sarma said, directly responding to Hussain’s biryani remark.
The controversy then drew in AIUDF chief Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, who launched his own attack on Hussain. Ajmal is contesting from Nagaon to try and make a comeback to Parliament after losing the Dhubri Lok Sabha seat to Hussain by a record margin of over 10 lakh votes.
“Rakibul Hussain was born eating dry fish, not biryani,” Ajmal said. Ajmal also questioned Hussain’s claim of being born into wealth, saying, “He was a poor man. Where would he get biryani from?”
The remarks have added a fresh layer to the already heated Nagaon bypoll campaign, with the three-way verbal exchange now centred on food references rather than the candidates themselves.
The Nagaon Lok Sabha seat fell vacant just ahead of the Assam polls earlier this year when former Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned from the party and joined the BJP.
The BJP has fielded former Nagaon Deputy Commissioner Devasish Sharma, while the Congress has nominated former Batadrava MLA Sibamoni Bora. AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal is also in the contest.
With polling days away, the Himanta-Rakibul exchange over biryani, pulao and “kata biscuit” has become one of the main flashpoints of the Nagaon campaign.
