Our Correspondent
Diphu, Dec. 20 (EMN): The convenor of the Autonomous State Demand Committee’s (ASDC) youth front Premson Bey has issued a press statement on Dec. 20, Wed. Responding to a protest which was held at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on Dec. 19 on the issue of autonomous state.
‘We are not questioning the demand which is in the heart of every hill people from Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao. The question of autonomous state has been for decades an emotive issue and every citizen in the Hills has patient enough waiting upon the ruling parties in Diphu, Dispur and Delhi to deliver their promises,’ the press release stated.
The front mentioned that during the recently-held Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) election, the BJP had ‘clearly promised in its election manifesto to grant an autonomous state if elected to power.’
‘Now since BJP is firmly in power in the KAAC, what is the need of a demonstration / protest in Delhi? Does this mean that even after winning the election in KAAC, the BJP needs to put up a show in Delhi? The BJP needs to clarify why did it fail to have a formal meeting with any of the ministers in Delhi? What was the reason of not even a single minister agreeing to meet the ‘protestors’ after seven hours of Dharna?’ the ASDC youth front stated in the release.
The youth front also questioned the BJP: ‘What is the party’s position of the BJP on the autonomous state issue? What is the party endorsement, resolutions in the national level supporting the creation of an autonomous state? Making public promises without party’s national executive does not mean anything.’
The youth alleged that the Congress party, which had been in power for many decades, ‘did nothing in the interest of the autonomous state despite the protest being held in Diphu, Dispur and Delhi simultaneously.
Further, the youth front warned both MP Birensing Ingti and the KAAC’s CEM Tuliram Ronghang to ‘stop playing with the sentiment of Karbi Anglong.’ The youth front has called upon the people not to be ‘misled by the conspiracies of the BJP and Congress as they do not have the courage to endorse a resolution in their respective party supporting an autonomous state,’ according to the press note.
