New Delhi, April 03: Outwardly secular, politics in India is all about vote banks and keeping a party in power. No wonder the problem of infiltration of illegal migrants remains unresolved, threatening to snowball into major crisis, say
intellectuals from the North East.
'Voice of Assam,' a collection of writings of 25
distinguished litterateurs fear a situation was developing
which may lead to a major ethnic conflagration.
As a result of infiltration "few districts of upper Assam
coming together and raising a demand for another separate
state free from the domination of Muslims fundamentalists,
cannot be ruled out," says the book.
The writers warn that unabated infiltration of illegal
Bangladeshi migrants is turning the secular society of
North East being divided into "religious, linguistic and tribal
segments at the state and administrative levels, ostensible on
the ground of opposing secessionism and aversion to party
politics."
The book blames the vote-bank politics, both at the
regional level and at the Centre, for the situation.
"Each political party of the state, national or regional,
has fallen victim to the 'vote-bank' politics which has so far
proved to be the main hurdle against fighting the ever-growing
menace of infiltration," says the book 'Voice of Assam,'
edited by Satish Chandra Chowdhury and Harendra Kalita.
The problem is likely to overwhelm the entire northeast
and her indigenous people in not too far distant a future, it
warns.
For the last three decades, politics in India has been
outwardly secular, but inwardly it is a politics of keeping
oneself in power somehow. This is the secret of minority
politics in India. Both the conservative and the revolutionary
vie with each other to take away the minorities from the
majority in each state and consolidate their respective area
of vote, says the book.
The writers deal with a variety of issues including
insurgency, immigration, IMDT Act and identity crisis among
the tribes of North East and secessionism.
"The geo-political, socio-political and socio-economic
equations in the entire northeast are undergoing a silent but
rapidly inauspicious changes which the rest of the country is
hardly aware of."
The entire north-eastern region of the country is facing
an identity crisis. As per present indication, the number of
assembly constituencies dominated by indigenous people will be
decreased while the same will be increased in the
infiltration-prone areas.
As a result "the situation is developing menacingly
towards serious ethnic and communal holocaust", says the book
written by 25 distinguished authors.
It is not only the migration from Bangladesh, but also
infiltration from Nepal, which is posing a threat to the
identity of northeast, it says.
"Unabated migration from Nepal is also likely to generate
socio-political problems, although Nepali migrants are yet to
come out with demand for separate political identity. But
there has been a demand for recognition of their language."
The book also alleged Pakistan and China of conspiracy to
"destabilise" the situation of North East, as well as to
"convert it into a Muslim majority area".
During the Chinese aggression of 1962, Pakistani flag was
hoisted in quite a few places in central Assam with the
slogan – 'Pakistan Zindabad', thereby sending an unmistakable
and inauspicious message which, alarmed New Delhi for the
first time.
As a result, at the instance of the legendary figure of
the Indian police, late B N Mallick, the Prevention of
Infiltration from Pakistan (PIP)scheme was introduced in 1964
with a view to detect and deport the Pakistani infiltrators,
it says. "ISI and its fundamentalist complements are now
directing their full force to grab the North East," says one
chapter in the book.
"There are reasons to believe that the activities of the
ISI and some of the secessionist outfits, are being remotely
orchestrated by China. In the present context, physical
conquest of the North East may not be a viable proposition for
China but that should not mean that she had given up her
designs over this area of the country."
It is indeed significant that China's map including
Arunachal and a part of Assam, is not known to have been
withdrawn or revised by her. China's role in training and
arming the Naga and the Mizo rebels is also no more a secret,
says the book. The book says, "even from the economic point of
view, China is presenting threat to the small scale industries
sector of the North East."
"China has been flooding the markets of the northeastern
state with cheap available consumer goods-particularly
electronic appliances. Such availability of consumer goods at
unbelievably cheap rates, has amounted to dealing a severe
blow to the SSI sectors of the entire North East."
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, April 3, 2008, 16:18
