'How serious is government about implementing Assam Accord?' AASU questions Dispur

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The All Assam Students' Union (AASU) has questioned whether the government is serious about implementing the clauses of the Assam Accord. The sub-committee formed by the Assam Government to examine and prepare the framework for implementing all clauses of the Assam Accord has not held a meeting for the last two months. This has led the student body to doubt the government's sincerity in implementing the Assam Accord.

Talking to The Sentinel, AASU general secretary Sankor Jyoti Baruah said, "The BJP-led Assam Government had taken a good initiative by constituting the eight-member sub-committee in October 2021 to examine and prepare a framework for the implementation of all clauses of the Assam Accord. The committee, comprising three ministers and AASU representatives also, was supposed to submit its report within three months. It was decided that the committee would hold meetings every 15 days so that the report could be submitted to the government on time. However, no meeting was held in the last two months (April and May).

"This has led us to wonder if the government is at all serious about implementing the Assam Accord. If the government is sincere in its intention, then a meeting of the sub-committee should be held soon. The Assam Accord is a vast subject. It is not possible to submit a report on this with just 4-5 meetings."

He said that the government was earlier too busy in the civic polls and Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) polls, and now it is busy in the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) polls. It does not seem to have time to focus on implementation of the Assam Accord.

Baruah further said, "During the rule of the first BJP-led government in the State, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, had constituted a high-level committee headed by Justice Biplab Kumar Sarma, former judge, Gauhati High Court, for the speedy implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord. The committee has submitted its report to the government but we want to know the present status of this report."

A meeting was held on September 7, 2021, between Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and AASU on the implementation of the Assam Accord. As per the decision taken in the meeting, the sub-committee was formed in the first week of October 2021 to examine and prepare a framework for implementation of all clauses of Assam Accord in general with special emphasis on Clause-6 (High-level Committee Report), Clause-7, Clause-9 and Clause-10 along with updation of National Register of Citizens, issues of flood and erosion, rehabilitation of martyrs' families and victims of the Assam Agitation and also in regard to the various problems faced by Assam, including the potential for all-round economic development.

Minister Atul Bora is the chairman of the sub-committee and other members include ministers Pijush Hazarika and Ajanta Neog, AASU president Dipanka Kumar Nath, AASU general secretary Sankor Jyoti Baruah, AASU chief advisor Dr Samujjal Bhattacharya, AASU advisor Prakash Chandra Das and Uddip Jyoti Gogoi. The committee was supposed to submit its report within three months as per government notification. The committee should have submitted its report in January 2022 but it has not been able to do so.

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