The ongoing ethnic-communal conflict between Bodo tribes of Assam and the Muslim community has taken a dangerous turn this week as the violence has spread to several districts. Riots have already claimed 40 lives while over 170,000 people from both communities took shelter in relief camps. Regardless of the fact how and why the violence got started this time, the real factors behind this confrontation are economic and cultural ones. Bodo tribes want to maintain their, presently much eroded, socio-cultural and ethnic identity; they don’t want to give up their centuries-old land and forest rights to newcomers. Dirty vote bank politics also plays a role wherein politicians turn a blind eye to illegal immigration from Bangladesh (BD); illegal migrants cross the Assam-BD porous border without much issue.
It’s high time for state and central governments to take steps to stop the infiltration in the border areas. A way to seal the border is to fence at least those locations where no physical control is possible. A fence between India and Pakistan in Kashmir valley has helped to reduce the infiltration and has led to less violence in the valley. Whenever an outsider group of different ethnicity or religious background grows to an extent which could impact local/ indigenous people’ economic rights, it’s natural for the locals to feel insecure and intimidated. India needs to get BD on board to start fencing of the border; it’s a pre-requisite if ever violence to be curbed in Assam.
MASOOD KHAN
Saudi Arabia