BJP’s Lok Sabha MP from Guwahati Queen Oja was denied a ticket by the party this time, but she claimed that she will never retire from politics and is ready to shoulder any responsibility given to her by the party's high command.
How were the last five years of your tenure?
The time I’m going through is different today, still, you came, and I am thankful for it. Actually, the people of Guwahati don’t have a lot of expectations from me. Instead, they shower much love on me and since the last few days, I realised that I haven’t been able to spend much time with the citizens of Guwahati. I gave more time to the constituencies. There are 10 legislative constituencies under Guwahati Lok Sabha constituency.
I spent more of my time with people of the villages because they always feel neglected, and there we have no MLAs like in Baksa, Chaygaon, Dudhnoi, Barkhetri etc. 2019 for me was a turning point as I got to participate in national politics. This was only because of Modiji’s blessings. He had wanted me to be a representative.
I received many votes which were beyond imagination. Never had anyone got more than 10 lakh votes among us, but I did and that is because I had tried to live among people and get their love. That time people had given me their votes with much joy.
We spent two years in lockdown with much grief as we were unable to serve our full term. Out of five years, we were able to work for our nation for only three years. This was a regret I had. But even then I believe that I tried my best to serve the people. I wasn’t home for even a single day as during elections I hadn’t been able to visit many places. I am visiting every nook and corner even today.
As Guwahati voted for you, do you think you justified your representation as its MP?
I am no one to say that. The 10 lakh votes say whether I am capable or not. But I understood one thing, whatever love I received should also be returned. I tried my level best to do it. Whatever development happened in Guwahati is because of Modiji.
Since we are talking about Guwahati, what do you think were the biggest challenges of this city that you saw or observed and how successful were you in addressing them?
A very nice question. My challenges were not only mine but our entire party’s. I observed that the availability of drinking water was an issue. That was one of the major concerns. But even after trying our level best, we failed in that area. I had promised the availability of drinking water and that bothered me a lot. When I was unable to solve this issue, I thought of myself as a failure. But now most houses have water pipelines. I am happy now.
Another thing is artificial floods. Even I was a victim of this when I got stuck in Anil Nagar during my term as Mayor. My photos had been published in the media. Our Prime Minister is also concerned about this and thus, I think that this issue will be resolved quickly too.
Talking about politics, since you didn’t get the ticket this time, you won’t be able to serve Guwahati for the next five years. What will you do? What do you think will your role be in the party now?
Why do you think that I won’t be able to serve the state? Even though I will be an ex-MP now, I am still in touch with other ministers. Even now I bring applications about the state’s needs. There is respect for an ex-MP and the government is ours, and honourable Modi sir has taught us to serve the nation in all scenarios. But whoever the next MP is, I can still work with him/her.
As a parliamentarian, how were you different from the other MPs?
We have many good and vocal MPs. Our issue is the language. Compared to the strong throw of a Hindi speaker, people think that we have no voice. Opposition can scream a lot, but we can’t speak against our own government. There might be some things we can bring up.
How hard was it to get the ticket five years back?
It was pretty easy for me as PM Modi had entrusted me and given me the ticket pretty easily. There wasn’t much competition.
Is there any chance that the way you moved from AGP to BJP in 2014, you would accept a ticket offered by another party?
Never. No other party. Not at all. I know only Modiji.
And the last thing I would like to understand is what you think will be the legacy of Mrs Queen Oja. How would you like people to remember you? This question might be dark or too futuristic.
This is not dark at all. I think for me this is a very good question. To me, legacy means keep doing whatever you are doing. Nowadays, even a neighbour won’t ask of you. I have created a legacy and I will continue with it till the last day.
Who is the better Chief Minister? Sarbananda Sonowal or Himanta Biswa Sarma?
I don't know who is better.
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