New Delhi [India], March 15 (ANI): Congress leader Pawan Khera on Sunday criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on illegal migrants, calling the BJP "weak" and accusing the party of politicising the issue ahead of assembly elections.

Speaking to ANI, Khera said, "I have been hearing this since 2014. They have been in power in the centre for the last 12 years. They have been in power in the state for the last 10 years. They are still talking about illegal migrants. So weak they are. Every time any state has an election, they start talking about Bangladesh... Do you realise that under the UPA, we deported 49,000 illegal immigrants across the country. In the last 12 years under PM Modi, 2,586 people have been deported. So what are they even talking about?..."

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His remarks came after the Union Home Minister Amit Shah accused the Congress of turning Assam into a "haven for infiltrators" during its tenure, asserting that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made significant progress in reclaiming land from illegal occupants.

Addressing a public rally in Guwahati, Shah said, "When the Congress government came to power, they turned Assam into a haven for infiltrators. We had promised that we would make Assam free of infiltrators, and Himanta Biswa Sarma has freed 1.51 lakh bighas of land from infiltrators. I want to tell the people, give us the third mandate, we will handpick and remove infiltrators not just from Assam but from the entire country."

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Meanwhile, elections in Assam for all 126 Assembly constituencies will be held in a single phase on April 9, while the counting of votes is scheduled for May 4, the Election Commission of India announced on Sunday.

The apex poll body said that Assam, along with the states of West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and the Union Territory of Puducherry, will hold elections to their legislative assemblies, commencing from April 9.

Assam will witness a fight between the incumbent BJP-led NDA government and Congress for the 126-seat assembly.

The BJP government, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, will look to secure a third consecutive term, while the Congress aims to defeat the ruling party to return to power.

In the 2021 Assembly elections, the NDA, comprising the BJP, AGP and United People's Party Liberal (UPPL), won 75 seats. The BJP is the largest partner in the alliance with 60 seats. Voter turnout was as high as 86.2 per cent with over 2. 2 crore registered voters in 2021.

In the 2016 Assembly elections, the BJP put up a strong show and won 60 seats, and the Congress secured 26 seats. The AIDUF won 13 seats. The voter turnout for the 126 state assembly constituencies was high at 83.9 per cent. As many as 199,47, 690 voters exercised their franchise in these elections. (ANI)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)