Guwahati, Oct 14 (IANS): Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said that Assam witnessed highest number of deaths of minorities during the 15-year rule of the Congress in the state.

Sarma said this on Monday while addressing a rally for BJP candidate, Toufiqur Rahman for the Jania Assembly seat, which goes for bypolls on October 21.

"If one looks at the history, one will see that across highest number of minority people died in Assam during the 15-year rule of Congress under the leadership of then Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi," said Sarma while addressing the rally.

"Whenever Congress comes to power, there are communal clashes. Assam has recorded the highest number of deaths of minority people in the country during the three terms of Congress rule," he said.

He alleged it is a ploy of the Congress to frighten the minorities and get votes. "It is only during the tenure of the Congress that communal clashes took place. Congress creates fear and rules people," he said.

Congress was in power in Assam between 2001 to 2016 with Tarun Gogoi as Chief Minister for three consecutive terms. Sarma was also a Congress legislator till 2015 and held important portfolios in the Cabinet of Chief Minister Gogoi. In 2015, Sarma left the Congress and joined the BJP.

Jania is a stronghold of Congress for last several years where the minorities are in a majority. The byelection to Jania was necessitated as Congress legislator from Jania Abdul Khaleq had contested the Lok Sabha election and won.

"The Congress party is busy in infighting, people have seen that. People have also seen that the Congress had not done anything for the constituency in the past. At the same time, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) also cannot do anything as they are doing politics in the name of religion," Sarma said.

State BJP president Ranjit Kumar Dass, who was also present on the occasion, said that BJP will win all the four seats which are going to by polls on October 21 - Jania, Sonari, Rangapara and Ratabari.

Highlighting the development agenda of the BJP, Dass said that the party will win over 90 seats in the 2021 Assembly polls in the state.

"BJP has set a target of winning over 100 seats in the next Assembly polls," he said.

All the Assembly seats going for by-elections on October 21 are held by the BJP except for the Jania seat.