Row erupts as Rahul's yatra curbed in Assam

Hundreds of Congress workers clashed with the police and broke through barricades after they were stopped outside Guwahati during the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, setting off a bitter war of words between chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the 6,600km march.

- Utpal Parashar

Later in the day, Sarma said an FIR was filed against Gandhi, Congress leaders KC Venugopal, Kanhaiya Kumar and others.

Assam police used batons to disperse Congress workers around noon as they tried to break through barricades put up to prevent the yatra from proceeding to a busy area in Guwahati, citing potential traffic disruptions.

Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah and the leader of Opposition in the assembly Debabrata Saikia were among the people injured in the police action, a day after Gandhi was stopped from visiting one of the state's most important shrines in Nagaon, prompting him to stage a sit-in.

The face-off sparked a political controversy.

"We have broken down the barricades, but Congress workers would not break the law...Congress workers are not afraid of anyone, including the [ruling] BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) and [its ideological fount] Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh," said Rahul Gandhi in an address from atop a bus, minutes after the confrontation.

Sarma hit back, saying he had directed the state police to lodge a case against Rahul Gandhi for provoking the crowd, using the footage shared on social media as evidence. "This is not part of Assamese culture. We are a peaceful state. Such Naxalite tactics are completely alien to our culture," he posted on X. He added that the "unruly behaviour" and "violation of agreed guidelines" resulted in a traffic jam in Guwahati.

Tensions were already flying high after Gandhi was stopped on Monday morning outside Batadrava Than, the birthplace of 15th-century social reformer saint Srimanta Sankardeva and a sacred site for the Assamese. Gandhi then sat on protest for over an hour.