OUR CORRESPONDENT
KOKRAJHAR: The Bodoland Janajati Suraksha Mancha (BJSM) on Monday slammed State Finance and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for allegedly instigating non-tribals to go against the tribal people in BTC area by saying that the non-tribals were deprived of all land rights.
The president of the BJSM, JanaklalBasumatary said that in his election campaign recently at Majbat in Udalguri district, Sarma instigated non-tribals against the tribal people of BTC. He said that in the name of criticizing former BTC chief Hagrama Mohilary and his political party, the Bodoland People's Front (BPF), the minister directly assaulted the tribal constitutional rights, tribal political and constitutional institutions and expressed his intention to promote the feelings of enmity, hatred, or ill will against the members of Scheduled Tribe (ST). By saying that non-tribals did not get equal rights under the BTC administration by BPF, Sarma had created sharp differences between tribal and non-tribal people, said Basumatary.
The BJSM leader said that to save the tribal people from non-tribal domination, suppression, oppression and exploitation, the tribal people should stand with the constitutional provision of self-rule in notified tribal area, keeping the land, political power, economic, educational, job and other resources reserved for them for their protection as weaker section of the society.
Basumatary said that in general state administration, tribals enjoy only 10 per cent ST reservation in plains of Assam while rest 90 per cent benefit goes to the other categories of population. "Non-tribals continue to enjoy 90 per cent share of state benefit in BTC 6th schedule administration also," he said. He alleged that non-tribal illegal land encroachers of tribal notified reserve land were well protected by the state security. By demographic aggression they make protected tribal people insecure socially, politically and economically in their own protected notified land and break the peace and tranquility in a simple tribal society.
"HimantaBiswaSarma, being in power, should have protected the tribal people from non-tribal illegal encroachers. Instead, he is alleging unequal share for non-tribals in the BTC administration. He is providing security and protection to the tribal notified land encroachers and making tribal people insecure," said Basumatary.
Basumatary slammed Sarma for allegedly leading the O-Boro (non-Boro) politics in BTC and for trying to create communal tension between tribals and non-tribals. He further said that the minister had done injustice to the tribal people by unleashing ill will, hatred and enmity among non-tribals for tribal people.