Guwahati: The Election Commission of India (ECI)’s delimitation draft proposal to limit the boundaries of assembly and parliamentary constituencies of Assam has miffed a Tai Ahom organization, which has revived the demand for a separate Ahomland state comprising the upper, central, and northern parts of the state.
The demand for a separate Ahomland was first raised by Ahom Tai Mangoliya Rajya Parishad in 1967, comprising erstwhile undivided Sivasagar and Lakhimpur districts. The demand got louder in 1973 when the organisation was re-christened as Ujoni Asom Rajya Parishad.
This organization continued their agitation for a separate Ahomland state till 1983. However, due to the influence of Assam agitation, the demand subsided.
However, Tai Ahom Yuba Parishad Assam (TAYPA) revived the demand in March this year. In March, the organization submitted separate memorandums to the President, Prime Minister and Union home minister for the creation of a separate Ahomland state carving out of Assam.
On April 3, more than 300 activists of TAYPA staged a sit-in-demonstration at Designated Dharna Ground at Sachal in Guwahati in support of their demand.
However, the demand gained momentum after the delimitation draft proposal published by ECI on June 20, in which assembly seats dominated by the Tai Aahom community have been reduced from 9 to 3.
Another reason for the statehood demand is the government’s failure to keep its electoral promise for granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to Tai Ahoms along with Adivasi (tea labourers), Koch Rajbongshis, Morans, Mataks and Chutias.
The TAYPA is also organizing an intellectual meeting in the first week of August this year to take suggestions from more than 100 intellectuals on the demand for separate statehood.
The TAYPA will also stage a sit-in-demonstration at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi in September to pressurize the central government for the creation of a separate state for the community.
“We will intensify our agitation due to the failure of the government to grant us ST status. Since the 2014 Lok Sabha election, the BJP has given us a lot of promises. But every time they refused to grant us the ST status based on the suggestions of the All Assam Tribal Sangha (AATS). The AATS feared that the interests of the existing tribal groups would be hampered if ST status is granted to Tai Ahoms and five other communities,” said Bijay Rajkonwar, president, TAYPA.
“In addition to this, in the delimitation draft, Ahom-dominated assembly seats have been reduced from nine to three,” Rajkonwar said.
Earlier, the assembly constituencies- Sivasagar, Nazira, Thowra, Sonari, Mahmara, Naharkia, Moran, Khumtai and Teok are represented by Tai Ahom community candidates. But if the proposal is finalized, the number of constituencies represented by Tai Ahoms will be only three- Mahmara, Demow (newly created) and Moran.
This was another cause for the revival of the statehood demand even as the six Ahom leaders of the present BJP-led government in Assam claimed that the constituencies represented by Tai Ahom would not be affected due to the delimitation exercise.
“We the Ahoms, who had ruled the state for 600 years, have to bear the brunt of the situation arising out of Central and state government’s discriminatory policies. After the independence of the country, the police and the army targeted the Ahom community mistaking them to be members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). We had to suffer due to atrocities of police and CRPF during the six-year Assam Agitation from 1979-85, during the counter-insurgency operation of the police and army against ULFA since 1990 and secret killings indulged by erstwhile AGP-led government in 1996-2001,” Rajkonwar said.
“From 1947 to 1972, there was no cabinet minister in Assam from Ahom community. Despite our sacrifices, only one Ahom representative was included in the Prafulla Mahanta Ministry in 1985-90. In 2016-21 one Ahom representative was included in the Sarbananda Sonowal Ministry,” Rajkonwar further said and believed that only Ahomland is the solution to all these issues.
The Ahom community leader said Ahomland would be a tribal state and all community people, especially those who have been seeking ST status would live peacefully with them in the proposed state.
“There is no other way to save Upper Assam from the influx of immigrant Muslims from Lower Assam districts. We are demanding this state under Article 3 of the Constitution of India,” he said.
The proposed state would be comprised of Upper Assam, North Assam and Central Assam- from Sadiya in the East to Aswaklanta in Guwahati on the West, Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Gohpur, Biswanath on the North and Karbi angling and Nagaland on the South.
“The communities who have been recognized as ST will have their Autonomous Council. Equal rights and privileges would be granted to the communities Moran, Matak, Chutia, Koch, tea labourers and other general category communities. The rights of SC community will be protected,” Rajkonwar said.
However, outsiders will have to lose their land and political rights as it would be a sixth scheduled state under the Constitution of India. “There will also be an inner line permit (ILP) in the proposed state. There would be reservation of 70 per cent seats for indigenous people,” he also said.
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“Ahomland is the only way to eliminate secessionism from the state as equal rights will be enjoyed by all the communities. We will also have an Upper House (legislative council), own high court, and other higher institutions,” he added.
Reacting to the Ahomland demand, a senior leader of BJP, pleading anonymity said: “We do not encourage further division of our state. At the same time, we do not want to offend any ethnic group. Our party will clarify its stand on the demand.”
Also Read | EC begins 3-day public hearing on draft delimitation in Assam