By Abdul Gani, TwoCircles.net,
Guwahati: Be it Safiur Rahman or Biswajit Mushahary, literally their plight is ‘in the same boat brother’. At the hour of crisis they are altogether to seek help from the government. They are the victims of ill-famed violence which broke out in the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD) in 2012.
Suffering from the harsh outcome of some ‘non-sense’ activities which killed around 70 odd villagers and destroyed properties worth in crore, both the Bodos and Muslims have come together under one banner to seek government help for their rehabilitation in Guwahati as the monsoon session of Assam assembly in underway.
People from Muslim and Bodo community of the BTAD staged protest seeking help from the government in Guwahati.
“Whatever has happened was extremely unfortunate. It cost us lives and properties and the most important harmony and brotherhood feeling among us. We were never like this for ages. We used to mingle with Bodo brothers and used to agriculture activities and other day to day affairs. Now, we want to get rid of the past and start our lives afresh,” said 60 year old Safiur Rahman, a farmer as they staged a protest under a common banner ‘Central Relief Committee’ to draw the attention of the government.
More than 1000 people from Dhubri, Kokrajhar and Chirang district staged a day long protest at Last Gate in Guwahati seeking help from the government to make their path towards rehabilitation smother.
Safiur Rahman who used to do agriculture activities also rued at not being able to go to field to resume work. “Somewhere the feeling of scare is still there among us. Be it the Bodos or the Muslims, people are a bit reluctant to go out and work. That fear needed to be healed to bring normalcy which is very much important to bring peace in the region,” Rahman who hails from Simaluguri of Kokrajhar district added.
He is one of the inmates who only managed to return to their house last month after spending almost one year in the relief camps.
The scene is same for young businessman Biswajit Mushahary of Lakhigaon of Kokrajhar district. Biswajit and his neighbours too have moved to their respective houses last month. He also expressed the same feeling that the ‘good-will’ among the common people must be brought back at any cost. “We have been living in these areas for a long time with our Muslim brothers. But suddenly what had happened was uncalled for. There must be some other anti-social elements which created all these. Now we want to live a normal live like any other Indians,” Biswajit told this correspondent at the protest site.
Hemendranath Brahma, president of the committee said that there are six relief camps in Kokrajhar and Chirang district and they are living in a sorry plight. “We are demanding proper assistance from the government to make these people’s life better. Their condition is totally inhuman and whoever have returned to their house are also suffering. So, if the government releases the said amount of money for the victims the normalcy can be brought back,” Brahman said.
He also said that they are trying at their level at the village areas to bring back the faith among the people by conducting several public meetings. Later, Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Hagrama Mohilary interacted with the victims and assured them all possible help from his side. “Their condition is really poor and we will convince the chief minister for the assistance,” Mohilary said. He added that he will be going to New Delhi to meet the Group of Ministers for the financial assistance for the victims.
[Photos: Manash Das]