The Arunachal Christian Forum (ACF) has threatened that it would go for a statewide agitation if the government fails to address the Tawang church issue. The ACF has now served 15 days’ ultimatum to the state government to make the status report surrounding the Tawang church issue public. The state government had constituted a three-member committee on 9 November, 2020, headed by Environment, Forest & Climate Change Minister Mama Natung, along with MLAs Nyamar Karbak and Nyato Dukom, to study the ground reality and submit a report to the government after massive controversy broke out over the construction of a Christian revival church in Tawang town. The report of the committee has not been made public till now.
Now that the ACF has served 15 days’ ultimatum, the onus lies on the state government to respond. The Tawang church issue is a sensitive subject and it needs to be resolved peacefully, keeping in mind the sentiment of everyone, including the Buddhist community of Tawang. The committee’s report should be made public, so that everything is crystal clear. The committee headed by Natung has done a lot of hard work and even visited Tawang to speak to various stakeholders. The affected parties can knock on the door of the court if they are not happy with the outcome of the committee report. In the meanwhile, the state government should continue to engage all stakeholders to try to bring a peaceful solution to the Tawang church issue. The delay in resolving the issue is not in the interest of the state.