The
memorandum maintained that the Dimasas constituted barely 35% of the
total voters in the district Electoral Rolls-2008, published by the
Office of the Deputy Commissioner, NC Hills in 2008. In collusion with
the Group of Ministers constituted by the Governor of Assam, it went
ahead without the consent of the apex bodies of other communities and
changed the nomenclature of NC Hills to ‘Dima Hasao District’ just to
appease one particular community, i.e. the Dimasas.
Since
the changing of the nomenclature of NC Hills, they, the Indigenous
People’s Forum (indigenous non-Dimasa communities) had been demanding
bifurcation of NC Hills into two autonomous districts-one for the
Dimasas and the other for the non-Dimasas under the Articles 244(2) and
275(1) of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India.
It
is noteworthy that through the Governor’s notification, a Cabinet
.Sub-Committee (Group of Ministers) was set up way back in July 16 last
year in recognition of the demands and aspirations of the non-Dimasa
communities living in NC Hills (now Dima Hasao). But not a single
meeting between the IPF and Cabinet sub-Committee has been conducted
till date.
Subsequently,
a task force under the chairmanship of PP Verma, Additional Chief
Secretary to the Government of Assam was constituted. As such, the task
force immediately started collecting the population census of the
proposed demand areas of the IPF through the student wing of the IPF.
However,
the data duly collected by the IPF have been rejected by the task force
citing inconsistencies in the data time and again even after repeated
corrections and adjustments.
Constant
delays by the Government and indifferent attitude towards its demand
for bifurcation have made the IPF doubt the sincerity of the Government
in its approach towards addressing the democratic and rightful demands
of the IPF, whereby compelling the Indigenous People’s Forum (non-Dimasa
communities of NC Hills) to take the extreme step of boycotting the
forthcoming Assembly election of Assam in the demand area under the 16
Haflong (ST) Assembly Constituency.
The
IPF communities of NC Hills therefore humbly request you to kindly
influence the Government of Assam to immediately attend to our demand
for bifurcation of the district under the above mentioned Articles of
the Constitution of India, the memorandum to the Chief Election
Commissioner concluded.
