North East Students' Union to launch region-wide protests against illegal influx on August 18

Guwahati, August 17: The student community of the Northeast, under the banner of the Northeast Students’ Organisation (NESO), has announced a region-wide protest programme demanding enhanced security for the indigenous population.

Scheduled for August 18, the protests are set to take place in the capital cities of all northeastern states, aiming to raise voices against the alleged large-scale influx of illegal immigrants, which NESO claims is threatening the language, culture, and economy of the region’s indigenous communities.

“Both in Tripura and Assam, constitutional safeguards must be ensured. In Tripura, of the state’s 40 lakh population, only 15 lakh are indigenous Tripuris. Assam is heading in the same direction, with illegal immigrants settling even in tribal belts and blocks,” said Samujjal Bhattacharya, chief advisor of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), while announcing the protest date.

Bhattacharya added that one of NESO’s core demands is the expedited detection and deportation of illegal immigrants from neighbouring Bangladesh.

“The protest will echo the demand for immediate detection and deportation of illegal Bangladesh nationals from the Northeast. We also demand the immediate sealing of the India-Bangladesh border,” he said.

Other demands of the organisation include the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) across the Northeast and making the Inner Line Permit mandatory in the region.

Referencing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s concerns on illegal immigration, highlighted during his Independence Day speech, Bhattacharya said the issues that led to the signing of the Assam Accord are now coming to the fore.

“Each concern raised by the people of Assam during the Assam Andolan is proving true. Forty-six years on, the state’s indigenous population continues to face threats,” he said, recalling Modi’s 2014 promise to protect Assam from illegal foreign settlers.

Speaking to the press after a meeting with nine state-level teachers’ organisations at a city hotel, Bhattacharya also warned that Assam’s demographic balance has been “dangerously altered".

“The indigenous population has been fighting against illegal infiltration for years. Now is the time to address this problem once and for all, under the provisions of the Assam Accord,” he added.

In Assam, district-level protests are planned on Monday, with the Guwahati sit-in expected to be held at Dighalipukhuri.