By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Aug 3: The Communist Party of India (CPI) will raise the issue of illegal arms possessed by a section of surrendered militants and cadres of the dissolved rebel groups in the Bodoland Territorial Areas District (BTAD) in particular and the State in general in the next session of the Parliament.

Addressing reporters here on Friday, CPI national secretary and Rajya Sabha MP D Raja said the illegal arms and encroachment of the BTAD land were the reasons behind the recent ethnic violence in the lower Assam districts. “Many of the surrendered militants and cadres of the already dissolved ultra groups in the BTAD area and other parts of the State possess illegal arms and encroachment of land in the BTAD area is also rampant. These two factors played an important role in the violence in the BTAD area. I will raise these issues in the Parliament,” said Raja.

He said, “People living in the relief camps in the BTAD area are still not secure and many of the camp inmates do not want to return to their villages due to the fear of reprisal. The State Government should provide adequate security to the camp inmates.”

Raja also blamed the BTAD administration and the State Government for failing to nip the first spark of the ethnic violence in the BTAD in the bud.

He further stated that the relief package announced by the Prime Minister in his recent visit to the strife-torn BTAD area was not sufficient to mitigate the woes of the riot victims and termed the relief package as an “insult” to the people of the BTAD area.

Drupad Borgohain, a senior CPI leader who also attended the press meet with Raja, said a few politicians in Kokrajhar district had incited the violence in the BTAD area. He also said the BTAD violence had not only affected the Bodos and the Muslims, but also the people from the Koch Rajbongshi community.