Assam to implement most suggestions of indigenous populace

The 14-member committee was set up in 2019 following widespread protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA), and submitted its report to then CM Sarbananda Sonowal in Feb 2020

The Assam cabinet on Wednesday approved the implementation of 57 of the 67 recommendations of a high-level committee formed by the Centre on implementing Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, which talks of “constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards” to “protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people”.

The recommendations of the committee have not been made public. (Assam Vidhan Sabha)

The 14-member committee was set up in 2019 following widespread protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA), and submitted its report to then chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal in February 2020.

At the heat of the issue is the fight by Assamese people against “outsiders”, which led to the Accord being signed in 1985 after a six-year-long protest. The matter came to fore afresh in the aftermath of CAA, which allows persecuted minorities in neighbouring countries to seek citizenship in India --- an option that triggered protests in Assam.

The recommendations of the committee have not been made public. But All Assam Students Union (AASU), which was part of the committee, disclosed in August 2020 that one of the recommendations was to make 1951 as the cut-off date to determine who is an Assamese (those who are themselves or have their ancestors were living in the state in that year).

Other recommendations disclosed by AASU included protection of the state’s culture, heritage and languages, job safeguards (100% reservation in Grade III and IV jobs and 70% in Grade I and II jobs for Assamese people), protection of land of indigenous people as well reservations in parliamentary and assembly seats for indigenous people and introduction of Inner Liner Permit (ILP) that will regulate entry of outsiders to the state.

“The committee while submitting the report had given three years’ time to study the recommendations. Today, the cabinet decided to implement 57 of the total 67 recommendations by April 15, 2025,” chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said in Lakhimpur after the cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

He said that discussions will be held with leaders of All Assam Students Union (AASU), which had spearheaded the 1979-85 agitation, and other organisations on the modalities of implementing the recommendations.

Sarma didn’t disclose details of the 57 recommendations that the state government will implement and stated that more information would be provided in the next 4-5 days.

“The remaining 10 recommendations, which can be implemented by Centre, will be taken up with the Union government and we will try and ensure time-bound implementation of those,” he said.

The CM said discussions will also be held with autonomous councils of Karbi Anglong, Dima Hasao and Bodoland areas, as well as organisations in Barak Valley (where most residents are Bengali speakers) before implementing some of the recommendations.

“This will give us a big security shield to indigenous people of the state, and we will be able to protect land belonging to them from getting taken by others,” Sarma stated.

The Assam Accord was a tripartite agreement signed in 1985 between the Centre, the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and the All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP) that brought the six-year-long anti-foreigner movement in the state to an end.

Clause 6 of the accord states, “Constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards, as may be appropriate, shall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people”.

Implementation of Clause 6 remained in the backburner for over three decades.