The ongoing language row over the state government decision of inclusion of Bhojpuri, Magahi and Angika in the regional language list of Dhanbad and Bokaro district took a fresh turn on Thursday as former Silli MLA, Amit Kumar threatened to quit JMM within a month if the government fails to remove these languages from their list.

Kumar, in a Facebook post, threatened to quit the party on February 20 if the government fails to prepare a Khatiyan based employment policy. He also asked for the removal of Bhojpuri, Magahi etc from the list of regional languages within a month.

Talking to The Telegraph Online, Kumar reaffirmed his post and said, “It is now more than two years of the new government and we have been continuously asking the chief minister for an employment policy based on Khatiyan of 1932. We have been given assurances numerous times but nothing has been implemented.”

“Even the constitution of JMM calls for preparation of a khatiyan based employment policy giving cent per cent reservation to native residents in Group C and Group D category jobs. The reason for the delay is beyond any comprehension.

"Instead of preparing the khatiyan based employment policy, the government has included languages like Bhojpuri, Magahi and Angika in list of regional languages which is not in harmony with the party constitution and mandate given to the government by the electorates,” said Kumar, adding that if the government fails to act he will resign from the party exactly a month later from today on February 20.

Meanwhile, the ongoing series of agitations being carried out by local language right activists demanding exclusion of Bhojpuri, Magahi and Angika from the list of regional languages in Dhanbad and Bokaro continued today as protesters took out a three-kilometre foot march from Domanpur to Rajganj in Dhanbad under the banner of Jharkhandi Bhasa Bachao Sangharsh Samiti.

The protesters also reaffirmed their resolve to take out a massive torchlight procession and a symbolic funeral procession of all the local people’s representatives of Dhanbad and Bokaro on February 3 and February 4 respectively.

In a related agitation, members of two different social organizations, Akhil Bhartiya Tailik Sahu Mahasabha and Teli Vikas Samiti also staged a massive demonstration at Barwaddah Kisan Chowk against the state government and also torched the effigy of chief minister Hemant Soren.