MHA panel on Assam recommends 1951 cut-off year & introduction of ILP

February 17: In a significant development, home ministry-appointed committee has suggested that 1951 should be the cut-off year for defining the indigenous people of Assam and introduction of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) to control the movement of people from outside the state. The committee has also suggested two formulas for the reservation of seats for the indigenous people in the Assam Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies of the state, including 67 per cent quota for them, as reported by News18.

The committee, according to the sources, unanimously recommended that those who were residents of Assam in 1951 and their descendants, irrespective of community, caste, language, religion or heritage, will be considered as indigenous people of the state. Besides, the panel suggested that the ILP should be introduced in Assam so that movement of people from outside the state could be controlled.

In case of reservation of seats in the Assam Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, all members, except three, have suggested that 67 percent seats should be reserved for the indigenous people. The remaining three members suggested that the reservation in legislative bodies should be 100 percent. In addition to the 67% reservation for the indigenous people, 16% will also be reserved for the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities.

The high-level committee was set up by the ministry to suggest ways to provide constitutional safeguards to Assam’s indigenous people. The sources said the 13-member panel, headed by Justice (Retd) Biplab Kumar Sharma, finalised its report last week, conveyed to the home ministry that it was ready to submit it to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and sought an appointment with him. The report is expected to be submitted this week itself.

The committee was set up in July 2019 as per the Clause 6 of the 1985 Assam Accord. The clause envisages constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards to protect, preserve and promote cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people.

Once the report of the committee is submitted to the Union Home Ministry, it would be the ministry’s prerogative to either modify, reject or implement (the report) in toto.