Not convinced of Amit Shah's overtures, NE India to continue anti-CAB protests

The people of Northeastern India will continue to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019 as they are not convinced by home minister Amit Shah's assurances. In fact, they are convinced that the government is trying to play divisive politics in the name of the bill, writes senior journalist Sanjib Kr Baruah.

New Delhi:In a celebratory mood, the Manipur government may have declared Tuesday a public holiday to rejoice the inclusion of the border state under the Inner Line Permit (ILP) system. The Assam government may go to town over the government's expressed intent and support to include six of the state's communities as Scheduled Tribes (ST).

But students, the main force in Northeast India, leading the anti-Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) movement, are not at all convinced.

"The government is playing divisive politics and wants to divide the people of the region. But the NE is one and united on the anti-CAB protest. Our movement will continue because all we are hearing are verbal assurances and are convinced that the government is just biding for time," Lurinjyoti Gogoi, general secretary of the powerful All Assam Students Union (AASU) told ETV Bharat.

"ILP has been ineffective. Despite being protected by the ILP, why are there periodic clean-up drives in Arunachal Pradesh to stop outsiders from entering and settling down? And the government has already admitted that the ST status issue will be possible only after a year at least. We have been taken for a ride for long, so how can we believe these latest overtures?" Gogoi asked, adding that even after the Union home minister's announcement in the Lok Sabha on Monday, AASU's counterparts in the other NE states have expressed solidarity and a commitment to continue with the anti-CAB stir.

The NE region, with fragile demography comprising numerous ethnic communities, castes and tribes and a delicate ecology, has borne the brunt of an illegal exodus from Bangladesh. As a result, there is an overriding fear of danger to their economic, social and cultural interests.

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Shah, while tabling the CAB in the Lok Sabha on Monday, had announced these measures keeping in mind the rising rage and concerns among people from the NE region over the CAB provisions. "We are including Manipur in the Inner Line Permit system, this big issue has now been resolved. I thank PM Modi on behalf of people of Manipur for fulfilling this long-standing demand."

ILP is a government-issued paper document to allow inward travel of outsiders including Indian citizens into an ILP-protected area for a stipulated period of time.

The ILP is already in operation in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram. The CAB also exempts tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, and Tripura from the purview of the bill besides the entire state of Manipur.

Now only parliamentary approval remains for the bill to become an Act.

Six communities—Moran, Muttock, Tai Ahom, Koch Rajbongshi, Sootea and Tea Tribes—have been demanding ST status for more than a decade. Granting ST status to these communities will ensure reservation of at least 90 seats in the 126 seat state assembly by way of fresh delimitation of assembly constituencies. At present only 16 seats are reserved for STs.

On the other hand, the CAB proposes to grant Indian citizenship to people of six religions (Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians) from three countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan) if they have been residing in India before December 31, 2014, for at least 12 months immediately preceding the application for citizenship and for 6 of the 14 years preceding the 12-month period.

These people have also been proposed immunity from being imprisoned or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920, the two main laws under which foreigners are declared illegal.

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