‘ST certificate to Sarania just a move for political mileage’ Says Janaklal Basumatary

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KOKRAJHAR: As the non-ST candidates in ST reserved seats are found valid in every election in BTC, former IRS Officer Janaklal Basumatary who is also the President of Tribal Rights Protection Association (TRPA), has questioned the inability of the Government of Assam to take action against the contesting non-ST candidates in ST reserved seats in BTC. He said that the political parties have always violated the rules and laws of the Constitution of India just for their political benefits.

Basumatary said that the then WPT & BC Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam Prafulla Hazoary had signed the official order to issue ST certificates to Saranias at the behest of the then Minister Chandan Brahma during the 1st term of the Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma-led Assam Government on June 4, 2018. The order had said that the Sarania Kachari people were not notified as ST, but were only under consideration of the government to be issued ST certificates as sub-caste Kachari.       

“Earlier to this, knowing the Sarania or Sarania Kachari community is mixed with ethnic communities and is not notified ST, the state government wrote a letter to issue ST certificates showing the community as Borokachari or Rabha in a meeting of the then WPT Minister Pramila Rani Brahma at the behest of the then influential Congress Finance and Home Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma,” he said, adding that the Sarania Kachari people were not recognized ST in the constitutional ST order 1950 as amended time to time and that the Gauhati High Court, in an interim order of WP(C) 2580/2014 dated May 25, 2014, statutorily restrained the All Assam Tribal Sangha, who was the then authorized authority to issue ST certificates in the state of Assam. Since then, no ST certificate has been issued to Sarania people showing them as Borokachari, he added.

The retired IRS Officer said that the state government then issued a communication letter to DCs and SDOs to issue ST certificates to Sarania Kachari people showing them as sub-caste Kachari. This was challenged in a Division Bench of Gauhati High Court in a PIL case No. 30/2019 order dated March 1, 2023 after which the govt communication letter and the authorization of All Assam Tribal Sangha had to be withdrawn.

Basumatary said that henceforth, the ST certificates issued to Sarania Kachari people stood withdrawn, rendering all such certificates void and invalid. Although the already issued certificates were updated as invalid, the present Sarania candidates of BTC election still used them, he said, adding that these certificated should have been rejected in the scrutiny of nomination papers but that to save the Sarania candidates, the Secretary of Tribal Affairs, Government of Assam, issued a clarification letter to all DCs of 5 districts of BTC stating that if the certificate holders were found belonging to Boro or Kachari ethnic community origin, then the certificate could be considered valid. Thus, the ROs accepted the Sarania candidate’s nomination papers.

Janaklal Basumatary said that if any such candidate wins in this election, the nearest loser could file a case by challenging the candidate’s invalid ST certificate.

Also Read: ‘Creation of LACs and HPCs violating 6th schedule norms in BTC’: Janaklal Basumatary

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