[Bengia Ajum]
ITANAGAR, 8 Aug: The Congress party has alleged that the state government is using brute force to try to “impose” the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) on the people of the Siang region.
Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Bosiram Siram while addressing a press conference at the Congress office here on Friday alleged that central forces have been stationed in the areas where the pre-feasibility surveys are being planned to be conducted.
“These forces are harassing innocent villagers. This is a dictatorial type of governance. The government should listen to the concerns of the people,” said Siram. He also urged state government representatives to visit the affected areas and interact with the villagers to get their views. Siram further urged the government not to behave like the spokesperson of a corporate body. “The Arunachal government is speaking on behalf of the NHPC. This is not good. Remember, our people will become landless if this project is executed, and their voices matter,” he added.
Further, Siram urged the state government to scrap the Arunachal Pradesh Freedom of Religion (AFRA) Act, 1978. “A law that creates division among the tribal people should not be implemented at any cost. There is no need for this law. Outsiders are trying to make us fight among ourselves based on religion. We should not let Arunachal become another Manipur,” said Siram.
Meanwhile, the Congress said that SC judge Justice Dipankar Datta’s statement on Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi was unfortunate. Recently, while hearing a case regarding Gandhi’s statement that China had taken over 2,000 sq km of Indian territory, Justice Dipankar Datta had observed, “How do you (Gandhi) get to know that 2,000 sq km of Indian territory had been occupied by the Chinese? Were you there? Do you have any credible proof? If you are a true Indian, you would not say all these things.”
“The Congress respects the judiciary, but this is judicial overreach and an unfortunate statement. Everyone is aware of how China is repeatedly encroaching on Indian territories. Even the BJP MP from Arunachal, Tapir Gao, on several occasions raised the issue of how China has captured land belonging to Arunachal,” said AICC secretary in charge of Arunachal Dr A Chellakumar. He said also that the Congress would work to rectify the Statehood Act. “There is a need for correcting Article 371(H) under which Arunachal was granted statehood. We urge the BJP, particularly union minister Kiren Rijiju, to work towards rectifying this Act. The people of Arunachal need protection at the level of Nagaland and Mizoram in the Statehood Act,” said Dr Chellakumar.
The Congress also urged the BJP government to constitute a judicial committee to investigate allegations of irregularities in awarding contracts to firms related to Chief Minister Pema Khandu, as flagged by the CAG. “The BJP remains silent on the issue of corruption within its own government in Arunachal, while consistently raising allegations of corruption against others. The SC had asked the CAG to submit the details in this regard. Whatever report we are hearing is based on SC directive and CAG findings,” said Dr Chellakumar.
