“I Owe This Honour to PM Modi and Amit Shah”: Sushmita Dev

Newly elected BJP Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev arrived in her hometown Silchar on Saturday (July 18) for the first time after being elected to the Upper House from West Bengal. She received a warm welcome from BJP leaders, party workers and supporters at Kumbhirgram Airport, where she was greeted with a traditional Assamese gamusa and uttariyo.

Speaking to the media at the airport, Dev expressed her gratitude to the BJP’s central leadership, as well as the party’s leadership in Assam and West Bengal. She said she was thankful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for placing their trust in her and giving her the opportunity to serve as a Rajya Sabha MP.

She said that when she left the Trinamool Congress and joined the BJP, she had not placed any conditions before the party. Calling her election to the Rajya Sabha a matter of “good fortune”, she said the position itself was not important, but the opportunity it provides to work for the people was significant.

Dev said she would work not only for West Bengal but also for the development of Assam, with special focus on Barak Valley. She thanked the BJP MLAs in West Bengal for electing her to the Rajya Sabha and also expressed her appreciation to the party workers in the state for their continued support.

Clarifying that a Rajya Sabha member represents the nation and is not restricted to one particular state in the way a Member of the Legislative Assembly is, Dev said she could be elected from West Bengal while continuing to work for the development of Barak Valley and the country as a whole.

Following her arrival, party workers escorted her amid enthusiastic slogans before she left the airport for her scheduled engagements in the region.