Assam Government Opens Dialogue with Protesters Over Scheduled Tribe Status for Six Indigenous Communities

Guwahati:

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Sunday evening that his administration is ready to engage with protesters opposing the report on granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to six communities. The government aims to discuss the Group of Ministers (GoM) report that recommends tribal status for these groups.

Protests have been ongoing since Saturday when the GoM recommendations regarding ST status for Tai-Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Motok, Koch-Rajbongshi and Tea Tribes (adivasis) communities were presented in the state assembly.

Chief Minister Sarma stated, "During today's state cabinet meeting, we examined the Group of Ministers' report on granting ST status to six communities and reviewed recent developments around this issue. The cabinet believes this report creates a pathway for extending ST status to these six communities without compromising the rights or interests of existing ST groups. Ministers Dr. Ranoj Pegu, Keshab Mahanta, and Pijush Hazarika have been appointed to meet with the Coordination Committee of Tribal Organisations of Assam (CCTOA) to provide detailed explanations of the report and prevent misunderstandings. I am also prepared to personally meet with the CCTOA if necessary."

The opposition Congress party has criticized the government's approach to this matter.

Assam Congress chief and Deputy Leader of Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi asserted that the Indian National Congress has consistently supported the declaration of these six indigenous communities as ST while protecting the rights of existing tribal communities.

Gogoi stated on social media platform X, "We passed an assembly resolution during the previous Congress government supporting this position. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's report on category-wise ST status fails to demonstrate how existing ST communities' rights will remain intact. It appears that Chief Minister Sarma is fostering conflict between the six indigenous communities and Assam's scheduled tribes. This represents classic divide-and-rule politics—tactics once employed by British colonial powers that Sarma is now implementing."