No Unanimity On Definition of ‘Assamese’ Worries Dutta

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: “Truly, today Assamese society is at a crossroads, and there’s no telling which direction it will take in the future. There is an urgent need to take the reins of political power back into our hands in order to impose a central, unifying authority, but the manner in which the present scenario is unfolding, that seems to be a far cry. At a time when Assamese nationalistic organizations, institutions and forces need to be strengthened, they are instead being weakened.” said Padma Shri writer Arup Kumar Dutta, a journalist and writer, while delivering the Brajamohan Sarma Memorial Annual Lecture as the chief speaker on ‘Assam at a Crossroads.

Like every other year the Brajmohan Sarma Memorial Trust organized the 15th annual lecture in the memory of Late Brajamohan Sarma, former advocate and a flag-bearer of the weaker section of society. Educationist Amorjyoti Choudhury presided over the event.

Dutta said, “There are organizations, especially those comprising students and youths, which have tried to unite the communities of the various states so as to present a common front. But their efforts are being nullified by the divide-and-rule strategy being adopted by the powers that be. There is parable about wooden sticks. Each stick taken separately can be easily snapped in two. But tie them together in a bundle it is difficult to break them. However, to point out the moral of the parable to a people racing headlong towards self-destruction seems to be an exercise in futility.”

On the crucial issue of implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, Dutta said: “Assam has been abuzz with various attempts to define the word ‘Assamese’. This has been brought about by sporadic assurances of various governments at the Centre that they would work towards implementation of Clause 6 of the Accord in over three decades ago… Time and again various governments have been stalling the implementation of this Clause by voicing their inability to find an acceptable definition of ‘Assamese’… It, indeed, is sad that today many indigenous communities in Assam have expressly stated that they’re not and have never been ‘Assamese’. This is patently a distortion of history.”

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