Govt, AASU on same page on ‘most recommendations’ of panel for Assam Accord clause 6 implementation

Guwahati, Nov 22 (PTI) The Assam government and the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) on Saturday reached consensus on ‘most recommendations’ of the High-Level Committee for implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord that come under the purview of the state, officials said.

During the third round of discussion on Clause 6, which deals with Constitutional safeguards for indigenous people, it was also decided to form a new review committee for timely implementation.

A sub-committee earlier constituted to prepare roadmap for taking forward the recommendations of the High-Level Committee headed by Justice (retd) Biplab Kumar Sharma also submitted its report to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma during the meeting.

The Assam Accord was signed in 1985 after a six-year-long violent anti-foreigner movement. Its Clause 6 says: "Constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards, as may be appropriate, shall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the culture, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people." Along with AASU, All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad was the other signatory of the Assam Accord. The third signatory of the historic pact was the central government.

“The third round of discussions on Clause 6 of the Assam Accord was held today at Lok Sewa Bhawan, chaired by HCM Dr. @himantabiswa. Both the Assam Government and AASU reached consensus on most State-level recommendations of the High-Level Committee, with a new review committee to be formed for timely implementation,” the CMO said in a post on X.

Assam Accord Implementation Minister Atul Bora, who was also present at the meeting, said the meeting has provided renewed momentum to implementation of Clause 6.

In a post on X, he said that of the recommendations submitted by the High-Level Committee, 40 fall under the purview of the state government, 15 under the central government, and 12 require joint action by both the governments.

“During today’s meeting, AASU urged the formation of a committee to monitor implementation of the recommendations. They also requested that a tripartite meeting between the State Government, Central Government, and AASU be convened before January 31, 2026,” Bora said.

He affirmed the state government’s steadfast commitment to safeguarding the rights of the indigenous communities and ensuring their holistic development.

“A core component of this endeavour is the focused execution of the Clauses of the historic Assam Accord—one of our Government’s top priorities,” the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) president said.

The AGP is the political successor of the All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad.

“We are confident that today’s meaningful discussions will provide renewed momentum to the ongoing efforts toward implementing the Clauses of the Accord, thereby further strengthening our resolve to protect the interests and identity of Assam’s indigenous populace,” the minister added.

Cabinet minister Ajanta Neog, AASU leaders Samujjal Kumar Bhattacharjya, Utpal Sarma and Samiron Phukan, and senior officials of the state government, including Chief Secretary Ravi Kota, were also present at the meeting.

Addressing a press conference later, Bora said the meeting held detailed discussion on implementation of the 40 recommendations in the state government’s domain and the 12 where joint action by the Centre and state is required.

He said the chief minister has been in constant touch with the ministry of Home Affairs, which is the nodal agency for implementation of Assam Accord for taking forward the recommendations of the High-Level Committee.

On the report submitted by the sub-committee, of which Bora was a member, the minister said it has provided detailed roadmap on implementation of the recommendations.

The issues taken into consideration by the sub-committee included detection, deletion and deportation of foreigners, deportation arrangement and bilateral engagement with Bangladesh, ensuring land rights, political, cultural and socio-economic interests of indigenous people, border security and NRC finalisation and re-verification of anomalies.

Suggestions for implementation of Clause 7, which pertains to economic development of the state, were also put in the report, he added. PTI SSG NN