[ Amar Sangno ]
ITANAGAR, 30 Jun: Ever since the BRO portrayed Kimin as ‘Bilgarh’ in Assam and covered up Arunachal’s name with white paste during Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s visit, ADC headquarters Kimin in Papum Pare district, otherwise a sleepy town, has become a hotly-contested battleground for various organizations and political parties.
Organizations including the All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union and the Arunachal Indigenous Tribes Forum, and community-based organizations like the Nyishi Elite Society, the Adi Ba:ne Kebang, the All Nyishi Students’ Union and the All Nyishi Youth Association unequivocally condemned the incident and visited Kimin town to assess the ground reality.
The organizations demanded an unconditional apology from the Border Roads Organization (BRO), and BRO Additional Director General (East) PK Singh did tender an apology last Saturday.
A few organizations also questioned the role of Chief Minister Pema Khandu, union MoS Kiren Rijiju, and the DC and the SP of Papum Pare in the entire episode.
Under pressure, the state government constituted a seven-member high-power committee (HPC), comprising Home Minister Bamang Felix, Education Minister Taba Tedir, MLA Nyamar Karbak, Principal Home Secretary Rajeev Verma, Divisional Home Commissioner (West) Kaling Tayeng, Director General of Police RP Upadhyaya and IGP (Law and Order) Chukhu Apa, to unearth the facts behind the episode.
The HPC members, except the home minister, visited Kimin on Tuesday to assess the facts leading to the fiasco. The HPC members interacted with the people of Kimin, including representatives of the All Kimin Youth Welfare Association (AKYWA), who spearheaded the issue from day one.
Sensing that the issue is gradually turning into a political one, the AKYWA and Kimin-III ZPM Bamang Yayu on Wednesday called upon all the organizations, including the student unions, to refrain from giving a political colour to the issue.
In a statement, AKYWA president Gida Kakum alleged that “a few vested groups are trying to politicize the incident,” and urged them to refrain from doing so. “We appreciate the support we are receiving from across the state. But any attempt to give political colour is not appreciated,” he said.
“We have given the GREF 30 days’ ultimatum. We raised the issue because our sentiment was hurt, and made it a state issue. However, we have been observing that some vested interest organizations are trying to politicize the issue. Some are filing FIRs, some are giving seven days’ ultimatum, which is beyond our comprehension,” said Kakum, and appealed to the all NGOs, pressure groups and student leaders to refrain from politicizing the issue.
“They should understand the sentiment of Kimin’s public. Our fight is against the BRO, not against the government or any politician. We raised the issue as Kimin was named as Bilgarh in Assam. We have given 30 days’ ultimatum,” said Kakum, and urged other organizations to “support without politicizing it.”
Welcoming the HPC’s visit, ZPM Yayu said she has faith that the committee would resolve the issue.
“The people of Kimin have given the BRO 30 days’ ultimatum and we will wait for them to respond to our demands. We will decide after 30 days, based on the BRO’s reply,” said Yayu.
“We are not against any politician or the government. Our sentiment was hurt, so we demanded that the BRO vacate Kimin. The HPC came, and we are happy and hope that they will resolve the issue soon,” the ZPM added.
