GUWAHATI, Oct 9 - Assam�s future will be safe and secure only if all the indigenous communities and genuine Indian citizens of the State stand united, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said here today. He was speaking during an induction programme organised by the State BJP at the Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra here, where over 700 members of the United Bodo People�s Organisation (UBPO) led by its president Mihineswar Basumatary and around 30 members of the Bodoland People�s Front (BPF) joined the saffron party.
UBPO claims to represent the Bodo community residing outside the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). �The Mughal aggression is still on. It is very apparent. The sons of the soil of Assam are not yet fully safe and secure,� Sonowal said adding that united effort of all the indigenous communities is necessary to defeat what he termed as �conspiracy of the illegal foreigners� to take over the State. �Assam will only remain safe if all of us unitedly fight against the foreigners in the days to come. We will have to defend ourselves against this aggression by following the ideals of Lachit Borphukan and Bir Chilarai and by uniting all the ethnic groups and communities of Assam. Only then will our language, culture, heritage and literature remain safe,� said the Chief Minister.
Sonowal said that differences and misconceptions that exist among the indigenous communities of Assam must be removed and added that the battle is to preserve the �self-esteem and self-respect� of the sons of the soil.
�In many districts of Assam the members of the indigenous communities have even lost their rights over land. What will be left for us if we even lose the right over our lands?� he said.
He said that the decision of the UBPO and of so many individuals belonging to the Bodo community to join the BJP presents an opportunity to remove mistrusts among the indigenous communities.
Sonowal said that the BJP represents all the indigenous communities and genuine Indian citizens of Assam. He added that the BJP-led government in the State has taken all the communities into confidence during its term so far and that the social welfare schemes launched by his government have been all-inclusive and non-discriminatory.
Speaking on the occasion, NEDA convenor and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also stressed on the need for all the indigenous communities to unite. �In Goalpara and Dhubri members of the Koch Rajbongshi community have lost their rights. The situation has come to such that many leaders of the Bodo Agitation are now forced to negotiate with (Badruddin) Ajmal for the sake of votes. We (local communities) are steadily losing our grip in many constituencies of Darrang and Udalguri,� Sarma said.
Lambasting the role played by some people whom he described as �mainstream intellectuals�, Sarma said that critical reports in the media emerge and protests take place if Assamese language question papers or school books are mistakenly sent to Barak Valley or BTR or if Bengali language ones are by mistake sent to Assamese-dominated areas. �But yesterday Arabic and Urdu were used in a meeting held by Ajmal. Yet all the intellectuals are mum. They dare not protest,� said the senior BJP leader.
He alleged that the Leftist forces are engaged in a conspiracy to create conflict among the indigenous communities.
�There is a conspiracy to finish off the indigenous people by inciting us to fight against one another. We are fighting among ourselves and some forces are steadily trying to snatch away political power. There is a conspiracy by the Leftist elements and a group indulging in communal politics to snatch power out of our hands by inciting the indigenous communities to fight among themselves. Thirty five per cent of people want to snatch power from the hands of the remaining 65 per cent of population. After another 10 years somebody like Badruddin Ajmal will sit in the Chief Minister�s chair in Dispur and decide what should be given to the Bodos, the Misings, the Assamese speakers, the Bengalis and the Hindi-speaking communities. We 65 per cent of the population must unite,� Sarma said.
He said that the BTR pact, signed earlier this year, is all-encompassing. The government is committed to implement all the clauses of the BTR pact, he added.
GUWAHATI, Oct 9 - Assam�s future will be safe and secure only if all the indigenous communities and genuine Indian citizens of the State stand united, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said here today. He was speaking during an induction programme organised by the State BJP at the Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra here, where over 700 members of the United Bodo People�s Organisation (UBPO) led by its president Mihineswar Basumatary and around 30 members of the Bodoland People�s Front (BPF) joined the saffron party.
UBPO claims to represent the Bodo community residing outside the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). �The Mughal aggression is still on. It is very apparent. The sons of the soil of Assam are not yet fully safe and secure,� Sonowal said adding that united effort of all the indigenous communities is necessary to defeat what he termed as �conspiracy of the illegal foreigners� to take over the State. �Assam will only remain safe if all of us unitedly fight against the foreigners in the days to come. We will have to defend ourselves against this aggression by following the ideals of Lachit Borphukan and Bir Chilarai and by uniting all the ethnic groups and communities of Assam. Only then will our language, culture, heritage and literature remain safe,� said the Chief Minister.
Sonowal said that differences and misconceptions that exist among the indigenous communities of Assam must be removed and added that the battle is to preserve the �self-esteem and self-respect� of the sons of the soil.
�In many districts of Assam the members of the indigenous communities have even lost their rights over land. What will be left for us if we even lose the right over our lands?� he said.
He said that the decision of the UBPO and of so many individuals belonging to the Bodo community to join the BJP presents an opportunity to remove mistrusts among the indigenous communities.
Sonowal said that the BJP represents all the indigenous communities and genuine Indian citizens of Assam. He added that the BJP-led government in the State has taken all the communities into confidence during its term so far and that the social welfare schemes launched by his government have been all-inclusive and non-discriminatory.
Speaking on the occasion, NEDA convenor and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also stressed on the need for all the indigenous communities to unite. �In Goalpara and Dhubri members of the Koch Rajbongshi community have lost their rights. The situation has come to such that many leaders of the Bodo Agitation are now forced to negotiate with (Badruddin) Ajmal for the sake of votes. We (local communities) are steadily losing our grip in many constituencies of Darrang and Udalguri,� Sarma said.
Lambasting the role played by some people whom he described as �mainstream intellectuals�, Sarma said that critical reports in the media emerge and protests take place if Assamese language question papers or school books are mistakenly sent to Barak Valley or BTR or if Bengali language ones are by mistake sent to Assamese-dominated areas. �But yesterday Arabic and Urdu were used in a meeting held by Ajmal. Yet all the intellectuals are mum. They dare not protest,� said the senior BJP leader.
He alleged that the Leftist forces are engaged in a conspiracy to create conflict among the indigenous communities.
�There is a conspiracy to finish off the indigenous people by inciting us to fight against one another. We are fighting among ourselves and some forces are steadily trying to snatch away political power. There is a conspiracy by the Leftist elements and a group indulging in communal politics to snatch power out of our hands by inciting the indigenous communities to fight among themselves. Thirty five per cent of people want to snatch power from the hands of the remaining 65 per cent of population. After another 10 years somebody like Badruddin Ajmal will sit in the Chief Minister�s chair in Dispur and decide what should be given to the Bodos, the Misings, the Assamese speakers, the Bengalis and the Hindi-speaking communities. We 65 per cent of the population must unite,� Sarma said.
He said that the BTR pact, signed earlier this year, is all-encompassing. The government is committed to implement all the clauses of the BTR pact, he added.
