Former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday demanded that the government make public the report of the high-powered committee on Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.
The committee finalised the report on February 10 and submitted it to Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday. Sonowal is yet to submit the report to the Centre.
“The government should make it public. It is not a secret document. Is there anything in the report which is a threat to national security?” Gogoi said.
Gogoi said the Centre is adopting delaying tactics in implementing the recommendations of the report by taking the report “via media” and asking the state government to talk about the need of Assam Assembly’s approval for the definition of “Assamese” before its implementation.
“This is nothing but a delaying tactic,” he added.
After the committee submitted the report to Sonowal, Assam cabinet minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told reporters that the Centre cannot fast track implementation of the report unless the Assam Assembly defines who is an Assamese.
Gogoi said he has doubts whether the Centre would implement the recommendations of the report.
He also condemned the Centre for not taking prompt action to check communal violence in New Delhi, where over 30 persons lost their lives so far and supported Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s demand for the resignation of Union home minister Amit Shah for his alleged failure to curb the violence.
Gogoi also criticised the Centre’s midnight transfer of Delhi High Court judge Justice S. Muralidhar on Wednesday, hours after he had slammed the Centre and Delhi police on the Delhi violence. “This is the first time that such an incident is taking place in the history of the country,” he said.
Gogoi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had forgotten the people of his own country when he met US president Donald Trump. “Why did he take over 60 hours to send a tweet to urge people to maintain peace? While people were dying in Delhi, the Centre was in deep slumber,” he said.
Regarding the prospect of floating new political parties by the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) groups, Gogoi said there is still scope for such a party in Assam. “But there is no need to float different political parties by anti-CAA groups. It will only divide the anti-BJP votes. Everyone should be united to oppose the BJP and communalism in Assam,” he said.
He reiterated that the Opposition political parties should field a common candidate for the Rajya Sabha, one who is keen to represent Assam and can talk against CAA.