Garo bodies decry discrimination demand creation of autonomous council

GOALPARA: The Achik Socialist Youth Front of India (ASYFI), Garo Students' Federation of Assam (GSFA) and the Garo National Union Women Wing (GNUWW) ,with its headquarter at Nishangram along the Assam-Meghalaya border in Goalpara district, on Thursday alleged discrimination on the part of the BJP-led government in Assam in creation of the autonomous councils in the State.

In a joint press statement, the three organizations alleged that neither the previous Congress government nor the present government had done anything to create a Garo Autonomous Council (GAC) for the Garos living in Assam.

"We have been demanding the GAC since 2013 under the banner of, United Garo Autonomous Movement Council (UGAMC). If the government can create Mising, Tiwa and Sonowal Kachari councils, why are the provisions of the Garo community any different from them?" said a Garo leader.

The organizations said that the Garo people of Assam had the right to preserve their culture, script and language for which the Garos had reiterated their decade-long demand for creation of a Garo autonomous council on satellite basis.

The organizations also warned that the Garos, who were one of the major indigenous tribes in Assam, would not sit idle and watch as their culture, tradition, language and demography got assimilated with other dominant communities.