JORHAT: Assam saw an altogether different Tarun Gogoi on Sunday up, close and personal talking at length about his "naughty" days as a stu-dent,
his dream to fall in love with a girl many years ago and his "supportive" wife and family as well as militancy.
Gogoi, who is originally from Jorhat, had a walk down the memory lane on his 75th birthday. After cutting a cake presented to him by the local press club here, he said, "I was quite naughty in school, used to play a variety of games with friends and, sometimes, even got involved in petty squabbles with them. I cannot forget the hours of adda (informal get-togethers). We used to ride horses moving around on streets! Sometimes, we had tea at restaurants and
managed to run away without paying a naya. Watching movies in night shows was another favourite pastime."
Recollecting one particular incident, Gogoi said when he was in primary school, his class teacher had once asked him about his aim in life. his reply was, "I want to be a prime minister." He said, "I had a liking for social work and politics was the right medium to pursue it. Also, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was a great source of inspiration for me. Incidentally, it was none other than Nehru who led me to join politics."
Speaking about his days as a youth, he said, "Those days were different when boys and girls were rarely seen talking to each other or going together in public." On a lighter vain, Gogoi said though he wanted to fall in love with a girl, "it (romance) did not happen maybe owing to a lack of proper opportunity". The CM said he was grateful to have an "understanding wife and family" who had been supporting him though he could not give them quality time.
The chief minister, however, said what hurts him most is mindless killing of people by extremists "in the name of seeking freedom and social rights". He said, "Mindless violence, starting from the 1983 Nellie massacre to the recent bloodbaths, unleashed by people against fellowmen, leaving many orphaned and widowed, hurts me most. I wonder how human beings can behave like animals and kill innocents so ruthlessly. I was also very dis-turbed by the Assamese-Bengali conflict."
his dream to fall in love with a girl many years ago and his "supportive" wife and family as well as militancy.
Gogoi, who is originally from Jorhat, had a walk down the memory lane on his 75th birthday. After cutting a cake presented to him by the local press club here, he said, "I was quite naughty in school, used to play a variety of games with friends and, sometimes, even got involved in petty squabbles with them. I cannot forget the hours of adda (informal get-togethers). We used to ride horses moving around on streets! Sometimes, we had tea at restaurants and
managed to run away without paying a naya. Watching movies in night shows was another favourite pastime."
Recollecting one particular incident, Gogoi said when he was in primary school, his class teacher had once asked him about his aim in life. his reply was, "I want to be a prime minister." He said, "I had a liking for social work and politics was the right medium to pursue it. Also, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was a great source of inspiration for me. Incidentally, it was none other than Nehru who led me to join politics."
Speaking about his days as a youth, he said, "Those days were different when boys and girls were rarely seen talking to each other or going together in public." On a lighter vain, Gogoi said though he wanted to fall in love with a girl, "it (romance) did not happen maybe owing to a lack of proper opportunity". The CM said he was grateful to have an "understanding wife and family" who had been supporting him though he could not give them quality time.
The chief minister, however, said what hurts him most is mindless killing of people by extremists "in the name of seeking freedom and social rights". He said, "Mindless violence, starting from the 1983 Nellie massacre to the recent bloodbaths, unleashed by people against fellowmen, leaving many orphaned and widowed, hurts me most. I wonder how human beings can behave like animals and kill innocents so ruthlessly. I was also very dis-turbed by the Assamese-Bengali conflict."
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