A lackadaisical attitude towards defining the term “Assamese” by the civil society groups, student bodies and the subsequent governments in Assam over the past 70-odd years has finally landed the state in turmoil. Now, a major part of the Brahmaputra Valley opposes the proposed amendment to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 and the majority in the Barak Valley supports the proposed changes in the CAB, 2016.

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The umbilical cord between the proposed amendment to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 and what constitutes an “Assamese” is not too hard to understand in as much as that today Assamese people in the state, which barely constitutes 50 percent of the nearly 3.29-crore population, feel aggrieved that they will be reduced to a minority on a linguistic basis. They fear an erosion in their cultural and social standings. The emotional outbursts on both sides of the fence have proved that Assam, known to be a land of assimilation, today stands disintegrated on an issue, which should have been sorted out years ago.

Crux Of The Problem

Why is the term “Assamese” at the core of this issue? For this, one has to travel back in time and understand how Assamese came into being. The earlier government did make an attempt to define “Assamese”, which would have included all communities living in the state at least till 1951, when the first NRC, however faulty, was published.

Today, majority people living in the Barak Valley and many in the Brahmaputra Valley belonging to the Bengali linguistic community refuse to be acknowledged as Assamese. There lies the crux of the issue concerning the proposed amendment to the CAB. Assam in the past had already faced agitations based on language issues and the fear now that with the passing of the bill, the Assamese language would be endangered has fuelled the current unrest.

This brings us to the next related critical issue. What is the actual number of people who have settled in Assam without valid papers up to December 31, 2014? And who will benefit under the amendments proposed in the CAB, 2016? Will the number be so huge that it will overwhelm the Assamese community on linguistic basis?

Of course, on the emotional front, the opposition to the CAB, 2016 says that even if one such illegal migrant is given citizenship, it is akin to an onslaught on the cultural and linguistic landscape of the state. In practical terms, however, the issue of the actual number of people getting benefited in the state of Assam will be critical, which somehow has been relegated to the shadows, in determining whether Assam is ready for further assimilation.

It is in this context of assimilation that the issue of the CAB has larger ramifications. Had the term “Assamese” been defined earlier, the sense of belonging to the state probably would have come to the fore and the issue of “Migration” and “Immigration” would have been dealt with in a practical manner.

Political Disquiet

True to the issue, even the majority in Barak Valley has never acknowledged to be part of the greater Assamese society, barring a few leading to the greater divide both linguistically and culturally. In such a divided society, finding a common cord would be difficult specially on issues that have a linguistic connection. And in an electorally surcharged atmosphere, the division would be more so.

Today, Assam lacks political and social leadership, which could cut across the linguistic divide and assure people that the “Greater Assamese Society” is very much alive and assimilation is not just a word on paper but would be practiced across the state. The genesis to the uproar witnessed in the form of a near total bandh in the Brahmaputra Valley and partial response in the Barak Valley in respect to the proposed amendments in the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 probably therefore lies in the fact that there has been a general lack of assimilation of various communities living in Assam particularly since 1947 when India achieved Independence and the fact that Assam has time and again failed to define who is an “Assamese” in the broader sense.

Assam has been a tolerant state rich with historical anecdotes of bravery and participation in the Indian independence movement. The state has also since time immemorial accepted migrants into its fold with open arms. It was through this assimilation that the larger Assamese society was formed.

However, depleting resources and slow pace of development not in tune with the rest of the country have resulted in general apathy of the general populace. With general elections round the corner, any spark could land the state in a bigger turmoil and in a surcharged atmosphere reason would be the first casualty.

Mukul Gogoi was a former journalist with The Economic Times and is presently Managing Director, Transbiz Associates Pvt Limited, an Infrastructure Consultancy firm based at Guwahati, Assam.

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First Published:Jan 10, 2019 12:49 PM IST