Tribal students stage protest opposing ST status to six ethnic communities

OUR CORRESPONDENT

KOKRAJHAR: As the Assam Cabinet has approved the Ministerial Committee’s report to the Assam Legislative Assembly on granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to the six communities of Tai Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Matak, Koch-Rajbongshi, and Tea tribes, tribal students under the banner of various student bodies have been continuing their protest demonstrations in different colleges opposing the move.

The students of Kokrajhar Science College on Friday staged a protest demonstration in front of the college opposing the government’s initiative to accord ST status to six communities. The students shouted slogans against what they called ‘anti-tribal move’ of the BJP-led State Government and warned Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma against playing dirty politics for political benefits.

Talking to mediapersons, the Secretary of Kokrajhar Science College unit, ABSU, Anjalu Boro, said that the move was not a good sign for the existing tribal people of Assam and that the genuine indigenous tribal communities were likely to face problems in all areas from educational institutions to jobs and to political representation. He also said that the existing tribal people had a population of around 50 lakh but that the six communities as claimed by them were 1.5 crore-strong and inclusion of such a huge population in ST list would definitely affect the due benefits of the existing tribal people. He further said that the tribal students would not get admission in educational institutions, jobs, and benefits of government schemes and privileges.

On Thursday, the tribal students of Bodoland University staged a strong protest programme under the banner of BONSU in front of the university to register their protest against the extension of ST. The ABSU, ARSU, GSU, AATS also took out a massive torch rally in the district headquarters of five districts of BTC expressing anger at the move of the State Government. 

The six communities together constitute around 40 percent of Assam’s total population, making this one of the most consequential socio-political proposals in recent decades. In contrast, the 14 existing ST groups, comprising around 12 percent of the population, have expressed deep anxiety over the potential repercussions. They fear that if such demographically large communities enter the ST fold, the rights, privileges and safeguards earned through decades of struggle may become effectively meaningless. Smaller tribal groups, including the Bodos, Misings, Deoris, Rabhas, Sonowal Kacharis, Tiwas, and others worry that benefits of reservation in education, employment, and political representation, already limited by administrative bottlenecks, would be dominated by numerically stronger or better-organized communities.

Critics argue that several of the six groups, particularly the Tai Ahoms and Koch-Rajbongshis, have undergone considerable social mobility, integration, and political consolidation over the decades. As such, they may no longer fit for the constitutional criteria of ‘primitive traits,’ ‘distinct culture,’ or ‘isolation’ as outlined by the Lokur Committee Report (1965), which forms the basis of tribal identification in India.

Similarly, the Tea Tribe community traces its ancestry to Adivasi groups brought from central India during the British colonial period, raising questions about whether historical migration should qualify as grounds for ST inclusion. The most complex dimension, however, revolves around political rights, especially the reservation of seats for Scheduled Tribes in the State Assembly, Lok Sabha, and Sixth Schedule Autonomous Councils. Although autonomous councils carry the names of dominant tribes, such as the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), Mising Autonomous Council, or Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council, the reserved seats fall under the general ST(P) category, not under specific tribes. This creates apprehension that newly-added large communities could reshape existing political balances.

Historical precedents highlight these complexities. In 1996, after the Centre temporarily included the Koch-Rajbongshi community in the ST list through an ordinance, Karuna Dutta (AGP) won the ST-reserved Majuli Assembly seat. But once the ordinance lapsed without a constitutional amendment, the community was removed from the ST list and lost eligibility for such seats.

Also Read: Assam: ABSU, tribal bodies take out torch rally opposing ST status to six communities