Kamatapur state under 'Indian colonial occupation': KLO chief

From our Correspondent

KOKRAJHAR, Dec 28: The Kamatapur Liberation Organization (KLO) on Monday observed its 22nd rising day at its Central Head Quarter (CHQ) in an undisclosed location in the presence of leaders of different armed revolutiory groups of the Northeast including NDFB (Saoraigra) and NSCN (K).

In a statement to the media, KLO president Jiban Singha Koch said the organization had been fighting to re-establish sovereign Kamatapur state since 1993. He said that Koch Kamatapur state was independent till 1949. “After Independence, sovereign India forced Maharaja Jagaddependra rayan Bhup Bahadur to go to New-Delhi and he was made to sign the Koch Behar Merger Agreement on August 28, 1948. However, the formal annexation of Koch Behar was announced on August 28, 1949,” he said adding that Koch Behar had been under Indian colonial occupation since that agreement. He also said that later, Koch Behar was again annexed to West Bengal on January 1, 1950.

Singha Koch said that since 1949, the Indian and State governments had adopted several measures to dilute Koch tiol identity within the so-called Indian mainstream. The Indian Government divided not only Kamatapur but also Koches into Koch, Rajbongshi, Polia and Kshatriya. Moreover, after 1950 there had been continuous influx of foreigners into Kamatapur state. Consequently, the foreign tiols systematically began to domite all spheres of life.  “This is a dangerous threat to Kamatapuri people in their own ancestral land,” Singha Koch said. He said in fact due to all these reasons the right of Kamatapuri people to development was being violated by the Central and State governments as well as foreigners. No protective measures had been taken either by the Central Government or the State government.

The KLO chief said that the Kamatapuri people had two important concerns - one is the forced entry of multi-tiol companies and another massive militarization and human rights violation perpetrated by State police, paramilitary forces and Indian Army. “In spite of all such provocations and betrayals, the Kamatapuri people still wanted to resolve the political problem within the framework of the Indian Constitution. It was with this intention that KGP, AKRSU, KPP and GCPA launched a peaceful democratic movement demanding separate Kamatapur state so that Kamatapuri language, culture and land could be protected. But the government of India was not willing to concede even these democratic and constitutiol demands,” he further alleged.

Koch said that the presence of all founder members of the United tiol Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFW) like SS Khaplang (Chairman, UNLFW), B. Saoraigwra (president, NDFB) and Jibon Asom (assistant general secretary, ULFA (I) and prominent leaders of revolutiory organizations, inspired him immensely to continue the legitimate revolutiory war against the ‘colonial government of India’. He also made a request to all the WESEAN revolutiory organizations to come forward united under the allied umbrella of the UNLFW in order to strengthen their constant warfare.

Kamatapur Liberation Organization was established in December 28, 1993, to regain the sovereignty and independence of Kamatapur, he said. He said organization wanted independent existence of Kamatapur (Koch-Behar).  “The Kamatapur Liberation Organization is rejecting the forcible annexation of Kamatapur (Koch-Behar) on August 28, 1949 under the treacherous Koch-Behar Merger Agreement made to sign under duress on August 28, 1948, without the consent of the people. India has no right to suppress and oppress Kamatapur. India has no right to interfere in our tiol right and also no right to destroy our language, culture and history,” he said and added, “This is our right to tiol self-determition. Now we ourselves will determine our political future. The right to our tiol self-determition is our birth and human right and it is established by the UN General Assembly,” said the KLO chief.