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Centre's hoardings written in Assamese allegedly defaced by local organisations in Barak valley: Report
Unidentified people defaced the posters of the Jal Jeevan Mission in front of Silchar railway station.
Police in Silchar lodged an FIR against local organisations on Tuesday for allegedly smearing government hoardings written in Assamese with black ink in Barak valley, news agency PTI reported.
Assam’s Barak Valley, which comprises Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi districts, is an area predominantly inhabited by the Bengali-speaking community. The government signposts and hoardings contain both Assamese and Bangla. However, the bone of contention was with the Jal Jeevan Mission hoardings which were written only in Assamese.
Unidentified people defaced the posters of the Jal Jeevan Mission in front of Silchar railway station and reportedly wrote ‘Banglay likhun’, insisting upon using the Bangla language in the posters of the Centre’s scheme. The names of two organisations were reportedly scribbled below the message written over the posters. Visuals reportedly surfaced that showed unidentified people climbing a ladder to deface the posters, news agency PTI reported. However, Hindustan Times could not verify the authenticity of the visuals.
Activists of Barak Democratic Yuva Front (BYDF) and All Bengali Students Youth Organisation (ABSYO) are suspected to be associated with the incident, the report said. The BYDF questioned the usage of Bengali. Reacting to the FIR, BYDF leader Pradip Dutta Roy questioned why Bangla was not used despite being designated as an authorised official language in that part of the state following a language agitation in the 1960s.
Cachar superintendent of police Ramandeep Kaur said the FIR was lodged based on a complaint made by the Jal Jeevan Mission officials. She said that strict action will be taken against those involved. “On the basis of the complaint, we have registered an FIR at Silchar Sadar police station on Monday. Appropriate action will be taken against the culprits after investigation,” Kaur said.
Silchar MP Rajdeep Roy warned people against divisive elements, saying that they could use language as an issue to foster enmity between communities. “Do not fall prey to such designs,” Roy said. Trinamool Congress MP Susmita Dev condemned the blackening of the posters but alleged that the hoarding disrespected the ‘Language Act’.
The Barak Valley is home to more than 3.6 million people. The use of Bangla as a language for official purposes was authorised following a movement by the Bengali-speaking community of the Barak valley, which saw the death of 11 protesters in police firing at Silchar railway station on May 16, 1961.
