Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the government is going ahead with a positive mindset in the demand for granting ST status to the six ethnic groups of the state.
This statement from the Chief Minister came close on the heels of the six ethnic groups taking out massive rallies in Tinsukia and Dhubri districts yesterday.
The Chief Minister said that, taking the demand seriously, the state government had formed a group of ministers (GoM). The report of the GoM would be submitted in the coming Assembly session, he said.
The police baton charged the Koch Rajbongshi protestors in the Dhubri district yesterday, leaving many of them injured. Reacting to that incident, the Chief Minister said, "The incident in Golokganj in the Dhubri district is unfortunate. The government has taken action against the errant officers."
The Chief Minister said, "The Congress government in the state did adopt a resolution in the Assembly to accord ST status to the six ethnic communities - Moran, Mottock, Tai Ahom, Chutia, Tea Tribe and the Koch Rajbongshi - without affecting the facilities of the existing STs. However, I have some sort of reservation about this idea. I think we need to pass a resolution afresh to accord ST status to the six communities even if that affects others to an extent. We had several rounds of talks with the ethnic groups, and the discussions were positive. The people of the state will realise how sincerely and positively the government is trying to resolve the matter when we submit the report of the GoM to the Assembly session in November this year."
The Tai Ahom Yuva Parishad, Asom (TAYPA) said that in the run-up to the parliamentary election in 2014, the then prime ministerial candidate of the BJP, Mr Narendra Modi, said that in the event of his party coming to power, it would accord ST status to the six ethnic groups of Assam within six months. However, he has not translated that promise into reality even today, a leader of the TAYPA said.
The central government formed a committee in 2016 to recommend modalities for granting ST status to these six communities. The committee, headed by Mahesh Kumar Singla, included representatives from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the Registrar General of India (RGI), the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the Assam Government.
The process for granting ST status is a complex one, requiring recommendations from the state government and concurrence from the RGI and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. The first step involves the state government recommending and justifying the proposal for inclusion in the ST list. After concurrence from the RGI and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, the final decision involves bringing an amendment to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order.
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