‘I Will Re-implement Two-hour Jumma Namaz Break’; Himanta Biswa Sarma’s Retort To Tejashwi Yadav

Ranchi: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday hit out at senior RJD leader and former Bihar deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav for his remarks on namaz break rule and advised him to practice before preaching.

Addressing media persons in Ranchi on the occasion of former JMM leader Lobin Hembrom’s joining BJP at the BJP headquarter, Sarma said, “Tejashwi Yadav is criticising me but I want to ask him, is there any such practice in Bihar? You (Yadav) should have implemented four-hour break when you were deputy chief minister of Bihar. Practice it first before preaching.”

Tejashwi Yadav had on Friday, August 30 had called out the Assam CM and alleged that he is seeking “cheap popularity” after the Assam assembly scrapped a two-hour Jumma break.

“I will re-implement the two-hour Jumma break, if those who are advising me first put into practice four-hour break in their respective states,” Sarma said adding that excluding Assam assembly, there is no provision of such practice of the British legacy from 1937 anywhere including in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha.

“Doing away with the two-hour Jumma break was not chief minister’s decision but it is the decision of all Hindu and Muslim legislators. When the Assembly Speaker on Friday announced it, no Muslim MLA in the House raised any protest. There are 25 Muslim MLAs in Assam assembly out of total 126 legislators,” he said.

The proposal to do away with this provision in the Rules of Procedures of the assembly was placed before the Rules Committee, headed by the Speaker, which unanimously agreed to drop the practice, he said.

Sarma said that the decision was being criticized only outside Assam, while the state legislators showed their commitment for working towards the development of the country.