Assam Pradesh Congress Committee demands withdrawal of dispute resolution proposal

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Saturday submitted a letter to Assam's Chief Secretary Jishnu Barua and averred that they will not accept 'the unilateral decision and steps' taken by the State Government 'in the name of resolving the border dispute with Meghalaya'.

The letter, which had APCC president Bhupen Kumar Borah and Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly Debarata Saikia as joint signatories, mentioned that any State Government is answerable to its respective Assembly in the matters pertaining to resolution of border disputes, as per Article 263 of the Constitution of India. However, the Congress leaders wrote, the State Government has bypassed this Constitutional obligation and submitted a dispute-resolution proposal to the Centre which simply involves sharing of territory which is already under encroachment by Meghalaya.

They two Congress leaders stated that this type of decision, which has been taken without consulting important organizations of Assam and by flouting the authority of the Assam Legislative Assembly, will have a detrimental impact on resolution of pending border disputes with other neighbouring States of Assam.

Borah and Saikia requested the Chief Secretary to intervene in the matter, failing which they vowed to knock on the Supreme Court's door under provisions of Article 131 of the Constitution.

Earlier in the day, police and paramilitary personnel did not allow members of the APCC to take out a rally to the Janata Bhawan for the purpose of submitting the letter to the Chief Secretary. The Congress activists started sloganeering when they were not allowed to emerge in force from the Rajiv Bhawan premises.

Later, however, a seven-member delegation of the APCC was allowed to go to the Janata Bhawan for the letter submission programme.

It may be mentioned that Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia also wrote separately on the issue to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, demanding that the final recommendation submitted by the State Government to the Centre be withdrawn and a Special Session of the Assam Legislative Assembly be convened urgently to discuss the matter.

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