Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to kick start the BJP’s poll campaign for the next year’s Assembly election by addressing two public rallies in Assam-one each at Kokrajhar and Guwahati even as the Prime Minister is also scheduled to address a large number of students at the IIT Guwahati (IITG). The Prime Ministers’ visit assumes significance as he would take part in the rally at Kokrajhar, organised by Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF)-indicating a pre-poll alliance between the BJP and BPF ahead of the next year’s Assembly polls in Assam.
The All Assam Koch Rajbongshi Students Union (Aakrsu) has, however, called a 48 hours Assam bandh from Mondaydemanding non-granting of the Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to the six communities in Assam including the Koch Rajbongshis.
Several Bodo organisations have also raised their demand for a separate Bodoland State and demanded the PM to make the Centre’s stand clear on the separate Bodoland state during his visit to Kokrajhar tomorrow.
The Peoples Joint Action Committee for Bodoland Movement (PJACBM), a conglomeration of several organizations in Bodoland, has appealed the Prime Minister to make his stand clear on Bodoland issue. The All Bodo Students Union (Absu) has also appealed the Prime Minister to make the Government’s stand clear on the issue.
It may be mentioned here that the Bodos, which is the largest plains tribe in Assam and a dominating group in Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Areas Districts (BTAD), has been demanding for a long time for creation of a separate state for the Bodos. While the erstwhile NDA government had created Uttrakhand, Jharkhand and Chsttishgarh and the Congress led UPA government at the Centre had created Telengana states, the Bodos claim that their demands for a separate state had fallen in deaf ears.
While the Prime Minister is expected to arrive Guwahati around 10 am, he will go directly to Kokrajhar and address the public rally around 11.15 am there.
On his return to Guwahati he will address the Yuva Shakti Sanmilan at Khanapara area in Guwahati. He would go to IIT Guwahati and is scheduled to interact with thousands of students there around 2 pmbefore returning to New Delhi.