Protests, Effigy Burnings Mark Assam-Arunachal Border Unrest on Statehood Day

GUWAHATI: Demonstrations and protests broke out at the border checkpoint of Assam-Arunachal Pradesh on the National Highway in Namsai district this morning, as Arunachal Pradesh is celebrating its 39th Statehood Day.

The protest, during which effigies were burnt, was organized by the Lekang unit of the All Moran Students' Union (AMSU) and backed by locals. The demonstrators raised their age-old demand for Permanent Resident Certificates (PRC) for the people of Moran who are living in the Namsai district.

The protests had an extensive impact on day-to-day life because there was a shutdown in Mahadevpur Town, Mahadevpur Chariali, and Dirak Gate.

Protesters also reflected their increasing dissatisfaction over what they feel is a failure to recognize their rights as residents. Most of the people in the area contend that despite having been residents in the area before the statehood of Arunachal Pradesh, they are still not granted the fundamental right to permanent residence.

Such persistent denial, they assert, has given rise to a strong feeling of injustice and alienation. An AMSU Lekang office-bearer said the community had no choice but to boycott the celebrations of Statehood Day as a means of voice amplifying their demands.

The protests included slogans against Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and Chief Minister Pema Khandu, with protesters claiming the Moran community has been deliberately denied basic rights and privileges that have been given to other communities in the state.

Though the community has had historical and cultural connections with the state, their call for PRC status has not been met, even after years of peaceful and violent protests.

In 2019, the BJP state government, led by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, tried to address the issue by offering PRC grants to six non-Arunachal Pradesh Scheduled Tribe (Non-APST) groups in Namsai and Changlang districts, including the Morans. The action, however, prompted widespread violent protests from indigenous communities.

The 2019 unrest claimed three lives and caused widespread property damage. Protesters set ablaze vehicles, shops, businesses, a minister's house, government offices, and even the site of the first-ever Itanagar International Film Festival. The disturbances also caused the suspension of transport services, an internet and social media shutdown, and a three-day suspension of newspaper publications.

The current protests are evidence of the growing discontent among the Moran community who continue to press for rights and recognition in a state they have belonged to for centuries. Although the government has sought to settle the matter in the past, failure to do so has only fuelled resentment and thus become an ever-present contentious issue in the socio-political sphere of Arunachal Pradesh.

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