Publish white paper on foreigners entering State after' 71: Mahanta

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Sept 26: Ruling out Assam shouldering the additiol burden of Hindu Bangladehis who have entered the State after March 25, 1071, Asom Andolan Sangrami Manch (AASM) chief adviser Prafulla Kumar Mahanta today said that the State Government should publish a white paper on Bangladeshis who entered the State after the cut-off date.

Addressing the press in the city today, Mahanta said: “For the mistakes of the Congress and the BJP governments Assam can’t shoulder the additiol burden of Hindu Bangladeshis. We vehemently oppose the two notifications issued by the Centre on October 7 this year regularizing the stay of Bangladeshi and Pakistani minorities entering India till December 31, 2014, in India. These two notifications have violated the Assam Accord. We did take the burden of such foreigners in 1966, and why should we take the burden again and again? We’ve submitted our written protest to the Centre’s latest notifications on the issue to the President of India. While receiving our written protest, the President himself said that he didn’t want any violation of the Assam Accord as he has been well aware of all facts that led to the inking of the Accord. We’ve also submitted a copy of our protest to the Vice President.”

Mahanta said: “The Assam Accord is a document of sanctity for the Constitution of India as it was signed within the parameters of the statue. Thus, any violation to the Accord is tantamount to the violation of the Constitution of India. The Assam Accord has clearly spelt out that all foreigners entering the State after March 25, 1971 should be deported from the State. How can we accept the two notifications issued by the Centre on October 7, 2015?”

The former Chief Minister said: “We’ve called a convention for detailed discussion on the latest notifications issued by the Centre on the issue of Hindu Bangladeshis. We’ve invited all those connected with the Assam Agitation to the convention to take a decision that can eble us to take our future course of action.”

On the Governor’s recent statement that ‘the Assam Accord is no religious script that cannot be changed’, Mahanta said: “The Assam Accord has the sanctity of the Constitution of India under which the Governor took oath. The Governor should think the matter afresh.”