ST status to unqualified communities not negotiable with GoM: Tribal Rights Protection Association (TRPA)

OUR CORRESPONDENT

KOKRAJHAR: The Tribal Rights Protection Association (TRPA) on Monday came down heavily against the State Government for its move to grant ST status to what it called unqualified communities saying that the issue was not negotiable with the reports of Group of Ministers (GoM) as it was a constitutional matter.

The president of the TRPA, Janaklal Basumatary, said that the granting of ST status to any community was not negotiable with the Group of Ministers (GoM) of the ruling political party and the ST petitioners with the existing ST organizations of their choice as it was not political matter but purely a constitutional matter. He said that the ST status issue was not a right of any community but a constitutional benefit granted by the constitutional process. He also said that the six communities were not qualified to be ST by the constitutional process as they did not meet the criteria for ST classification.

"The six communities are enjoying the OBC category reservation benefits. The government is trying to grant ST benefits to these unqualified communities by relaxing the existing criteria purely for the political interest of the ruling parties at the cost of existing STs, the weaker section of society. So, there should not be any more negotiations," he said, adding that the government should stop playing politics with the issue which could invite undue conflicts.

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