“Congress Looted The Northeast’s Prosperity; PM Modi Restored Its Dignity And Destiny:” Sarbananda Sonowal.

New Delhi, Delhi, 2nd of February, 2026 : The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal launched a blistering political and moral indictment of the Congress party, asserting that decades of Congress rule systematically ‘looted the property, prosperity and potential of the Northeast, reducing a region rich in resources, culture and strategic importance into a zone of neglect, agitation and deprivation’.

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal — a ‘proud tribal son of India’ — was bestowed the honour to present the Motion of Thanks in the Lok Sabha, to the President’s address to the joint Parliamentary Session, here today. In the process, Sonowal became the first tribal as well as first MP from Northeast to do so in the history of India’s parliamentary proceedings. 

“The Honourable President’s Address, delivered by India’s first Adivasi President, second Mahila President and the youngest President of a nation with the world’s largest youth population, is not a coincidence but a conscious reflection of a great nation in motion. It embodies our journey towards reclaiming our civilisational ‘Virasat’ while building a fair, equitable and free society. As a tribal from NER & Assam, I feel immense pride in moving the ‘Motion of Thanks’—becoming the first tribal and the first MP from the Northeast to do so—symbolising an India where social justice, inclusive growth and the resolve for a Viksit Bharat guide our parliamentary history,” said Sarbananda Sonowal. 

Sonowal said the President’s speech should be read not only as a roadmap for India’s future, but also as a historic verdict on the failures of the Congress era and a declaration of irreversible national transformation under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “The President’s Address has done what the Congress never could—it spoke honestly about the past, decisively about the present, and confidently about the future. It marks India’s final departure from decades of misrule, corruption and calculated neglect,” Sonowal said.

Sonowal said that Congress regime was not merely an administrative failure, but the systematic looting of the Northeast’s prosperity and opportunities. “The Northeast has been rich in oil, gas, tea, hydropower, forests, biodiversity, culture and strategic geography. Yet under Congress rule, its wealth was extracted while its people were ignored. Its resources were exploited, but its aspirations were denied,” he said.

Sarbananda Sonowal said refineries, industries, universities, bridges and connectivity were sanctioned only after prolonged mass movements, protests and sacrifices. “Without Andolan, there was no Samadhan. Congress forced the Northeast to beg for what was rightfully its own. This was not neglect by accident. This was neglect by design,” Sonowal asserted.

Sonowal recalled how Congress governments failed to reinvest regional resources into regional development, leaving youth unemployed, infrastructure broken, and entire generations alienated from the national mainstream. Taking direct aim at Congress’ repeated claims of representing the Northeast, Sonowal said even the elevation of a Congress MP from Assam to the Office of Prime Minister, who was PM for 10 years, failed to translate into meaningful development for the region.

“Representation without resolve is meaningless. Congress had symbolic presence, but no political will. Despite having a Prime Minister from Assam — an MP who represented the state for more than a decade — the Northeast remained disconnected, underdeveloped and dismissed,” Sonowal said.

According to Sarbananda Sonowal, this exposed Congress’ core governance flaw—obsession with power, not progress; dynasty, not development. “The Congress never saw the Northeast as a partner in India’s growth. It saw it as an inconvenience—too distant, too small in numbers, too complex to bother about.”

Sonowal said Congress’ historical record in the Northeast is marked by abandonment during crises and indifference during peace. He cited the trauma of the 1962 war, the imposition of illegal elections, decades of agitation, draconian laws like the IMDT Act, and chronic underinvestment in infrastructure and security.

“The Northeast paid the price for Congress’ strategic blindness and political arrogance. Its people were left to fend for themselves while Delhi looked away,” he said.

Sonowal said the year 2014 marked a decisive rupture with this dark legacy. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji did not inherit a strong system—he rebuilt a broken one. He did not inherit confidence—he restored it. It has been his intent that sounded the death knell for Bharat’s final break from Congress-era decay. With your hatred, you will never be able to win the love and respect of the people. Your dark past allures distrust. We urge you to let it go and join PM Modiji’s historic effort to rebuild Bharat towards making it Viksit. Join this journey and make your contribution towards nation building meaningful,” Sonowal said.

Under PM Modi’s leadership, Sonowal said the Northeast experienced a historic shift—from neglect to national priority, from isolation to integration, from conflict to confidence. “For the first time, the Northeast was not managed—it was empowered,” Sonowal quipped.

The address highlighted historic tax reforms—the exemption of income up to ₹12 lakh and next‑gen GST reforms which have saved citizens ₹1 lakh crore. Inflation which used to about 9% and at one stage even crossed double digits in UPA era, fell to a remarkable low of 4.6% in the fiscal year 2024-25.

Drawing from the President’s Address, Sonowal highlighted unprecedented investments in highways, railways, airports, bridges, tunnels and digital connectivity across the Northeast. “These projects are not concrete structures; they are instruments of justice. They connect people to markets, children to schools, patients to hospitals, and the region to the rest of India,” he said. Projects like the Bogibeel Bridge, Dhola-Sadiya Bridge, Sela Tunnel, expanded railway networks and Vande Bharat services have transformed daily life and economic opportunity, Sonowal added. “Earlier, the Northeast had to agitate for bridges. Today, it inaugurates world-class infrastructure,” he said.

Sonowal said Congress ignored the cultural and civilisational contributions of the Northeast, leaving its heroes unsung and its traditions marginalised. In contrast, he said the present government has restored cultural dignity—bringing regional icons into national consciousness, securing UNESCO recognition for heritage sites, and promoting GI tags for indigenous products. “This is not tokenism. This is cultural justice,” he said.

Referring to the President’s Address delivered by India’s first Adivasi President, Sonowal said it symbolises a deeper shift in India’s power structure. “For decades, Congress spoke about tribal welfare from a distance. Prime Minister Modi ji governs with tribal communities at the centre,” he said.

Sonowal said, “Governance is about dignity, delivery and direct access. For decades, the Congress treated Assam’s tea garden workers as a vote bank, honouring them with symbols like a dhoti and a kambal while denying them dignity and opportunity. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that colonial mindset has ended. Today, tea garden workers have bank accounts, model schools for their children, better roads, healthcare support for pregnant women, and national recognition for their culture. This is not tokenism—this is respect, empowerment and real transformation.”

He cited national recognition of tribal freedom fighters, focused welfare schemes, education initiatives, and livelihood support as proof that social justice today is about dignity, not dependency. 

“The Congress reduced tea garden workers to symbolic gestures and colonial exploitation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi restored their dignity. From direct benefit transfers and model schools to healthcare, roads and the global recognition of Jhumur dance, tea garden workers are finally being treated as equal partners in India’s growth, not forgotten labour. Tea garden workers were ignored for decades and remembered only during elections. Today, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, they are at the centre of governance—benefiting from direct benefit transfers, education, healthcare, infrastructure and cultural recognition. This shift from neglect to dignity defines New India’s commitment to inclusive development,” said Sonowal. 

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said the President’s Address sharply exposes the difference between Congress’ politics of loot and the Modi government’s politics of delivery. “Earlier, files moved slowly and money disappeared quickly. Today, governance is digital, transparent and direct,” he said, citing direct benefit transfers (DBT), housing, water, healthcare and sanitation initiatives that have transformed lives. He added that corruption is no longer a system—it is an exception that is punished.

On infrastructure and economic reforms, Sonowal said Congress lacked both vision and courage. “They never imagined ports as growth engines, rivers as trade corridors, or shipbuilding as a strategic industry,” he said. Under PM Narendra Modi’s leadership, ports, waterways and logistics have become pillars of national competitiveness, creating jobs and attracting investment.

Delivering his strongest political message, Sonowal said the people of the Northeast have understood Congress’ true character. “The Northeast will always reject Congress in any election—not out of anger, but out of experience. The people will never return to those who looted their prosperity and silenced their aspirations,” he said.

In a rare appeal, Sonowal called upon the opposition to abandon obstructionist politics and join the national journey of reform, progress and prosperity. “The time for cynicism is over. The time for constant negativity is over. If the opposition truly cares for the nation, it should support reforms, infrastructure, inclusion and growth. India is moving forward—with or without them—but history will remember who stood with progress and who stood in its way,” Sonowal said.

Sonowal quipped to the opposition members that the people of Assam and the Northeast will ignore and neglect the pleas by the Congress. Sonowal said that any effort by the opposition in the forthcoming elections to sway the people as they now know & rejected the opportunistic politics of Congress. 

Concluding, Sonowal said the President’s Address captures the spirit of a nation that has reclaimed its confidence and corrected historical wrongs. “This transformation is not temporary. It is irreversible. The era of Congress decay is over. The era of New India has begun,” Sonowal concluded.

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