By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Oct 19: The All Assam Tribal Sangha, along with nine other tribal bodies have decried the governments’ relaxation on verification documents required for rehabilitation of relief camp inmates in the three BTAD districts of Kokrajhar, Dhubri and Chirang, stating that such relaxation only revealed the soft stand of the Congress towards the illegal Bangladeshis.

Speaking to mediapersons here today, Aditya Khakhlari, general secretary of  All Assam Tribal Sangha said that after the rehabilitation of 19,000 genuine residents having land documents, the govenment was now trying to rehabilitate the 1.30 lakh victims with such documents, even though they do not have their names in the 1971 voters’ list.

He said, “We would never allow the infiltration of our lands by illegal immigrants. The government is now trying to make the rehabilitation of the 1.30 lakh immigrants easier by allowing documents like pan cards, ration cards, job cards etc as substitutes of land documents. These people do not even have their names enlisted in the 1971 voters’ list.”

 “Land documents should not only be a requirement for rehabilitation in BTAD, it should be an important criteria for rehabilitation in any other part of Assam,” he said with an air of caution saying that if such victims are rehabilitated, then situation in BTAD might turn hostile again.

 The organizations unanimously voiced their displeasure over the 50 per cent cut-off in graduation for writing the TET examination to be held in February 2013, stating that there were many meritorious candidates who had failed to seciure this percentage in graduation but did extremely well in their masters’ course.

Terming this decision as a violation of the rights of ST/SC students by the Education department, the organizations appealed that the cut-off should be relaxed to 40 per cent for ST/SC candidates. They have also appealed to the Gauhati High Court in this reagrd.

Khakhlari said that although a meeting was held with the Chief Minister in this regard, no action has been taken in this end. He said, “Not just in TET examination, the rights of ST/SC candidates have been violated even in appointment of fourth grade employees in the education department.

The organizations also demanded appointment of local youths in model hospitals in various rural localituies.

The meeting was attended by the All Assam Tribal Youth League, Mising Memak Kebang, Dimasa Students’ Union, Karbi Students’ Union, Takam Mising Porin Kebang, All Tiwas Students’ Union, All Assam Sarania Kachari Students’ Union, All Assam Modahi Janagusthi Students’ Union and All Assam Deuri Students’ Union.