Central government’s decision to grant citizenship to Chakma-Hajong refugees living in Arunachal Pradesh (since the 1960s) has created a ruckus in the state and every section of the society has come together against the Centre’s decision expressing their displeasure. From economic shut-downs to strong political resentments, Arunachal Pradesh in the past few weeks has witnessed protests of various magnitudes. No matter what, the people of Arunachal Pradesh are not at all ready to accept the Chakma-Hajongs as citizens. The indigenous communities feel that granting citizenship to these refugees of over six decades could threaten their very existence. Northeast Today digs in deeper.
The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)-led NDA (Nation-al Democratic Alliance) government on September 13, 2017, cleared the citizenship for over one lakh Chakma-HajongsBuddhists and Hindus- who fled to India in the 1960s to escape religious persecution in Chittagong Hill area of Bangladesh (erstwhile East Pakistan). The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, which was also attended by of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu.
The decision to grant citizenship was taken honouring a 2015 Supreme Court verdict, in which the apex court had asked the Arunachal government to grant citizenship to the Chakma-Hajong refugees. However, it was made clear by the Home Ministry that that indigenous people’s right won’t be diluted and that these refugees won’t be given any land ownership rights.
Centre’s decision has found no takers in the hill state and it has been opposed vehemently. Pema Khandu’s Stance
Chief Minister Pema Khandu has reiterated the concerns of the people of Arunachal Pradesh on the vexed issue of granting citizenship to Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state. In a letter to the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Khandu said that the matter is of deep emotional concern and that the state is not ready to accept any infringement of the Constitutional protection bestowed on the tribal of the state.
Khandu pointed that Arunachal Pradesh, with its unique history, is governed by a special Act-Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873which prescribes a line called the ‘Inner Line’.
This story is from the October 2017 edition of Northeast Today.
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This story is from the October 2017 edition of Northeast Today.
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