Assamese Muslims slam Ajmal for 'communalizing' violence in BTC areas
GUWAHATI: Assam's indigenous Muslim communities, the Gorias and the Morias, have accused All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) chief Badruddin Ajmal of communalizing the violence in Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) areas, leading to mass exodus of northeast people from different states in India.
The indigenous Muslim communities, under the banner of Sadou Asom Goria Moria Deshi Jatiya Parishad (SAGMDJP), equally blamed Hindu, Muslim and Christian fundamentalist forces for trying to wedge differences among different indigenous communities during the BTAD conflict. SAGMDJP also demanded the arrest of Ajmal, alleging that he took the initiative of giving the Bodo-Muslim conflict communal colour.
"When one says that the conflict in BTAD is between Bodos and Muslims, we, as indigenous Muslims, are also dragged in. But this is not true. We are not involved in the conflict. Ajmal has no right to dub the conflict in BTAD as a Bodo-Muslim clash. We also don't want people like L K Advani to talk on behalf of people of Assam. It is because of these communal forces that today NE people are leaving other cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad out of fear," SAGMDJP president Sahiruddin Ali Ahmed said.
Ahmed also said that the NE people are leaving their places of study or work in other states in fear only because of the handiwork of fundamentalist forces which termed the BTAD violence as Bodo-Muslim conflict.
"Even indigenous Assamese Muslims who are studying and working in cities outside the state are having to return to Assam. Our community has suffered equally because of the communal gameplan of fundamentalist forces," SAGMDJP general secretary Hafijul Ahmed said.
AIUDF has categorically denied that Ajmal was involved in provoking communal sentiment in the BTAD violence and termed the conflict as an ethnic clash. "In no way was BTAD chief Badruddin Ajmal involved in provoking communal sentiment or giving communal colour to the BTAD violence. Our chief is ready to face any inquiry. But it is unfortunate that different political parties and organisations have already given their verdicts even before any inquiry could be done," AIUDF general secretary Aditya Langthasa said.
Langthasa also demanded a CBI inquiry into the incidents of harassment of NE students and asked the government to take strong action against rumour-mongers.
Shah Sultan Alam, an indigenous Assamese Muslim working as senior software engineer in Bangalore, said the Mumbai violence was an outcome of communalization of the BTAD violence. "The non-resident indigenous Assamese Muslims are of the opinion that since the violence is confined to a certain part of Assam, it should not be viewed as communal violence of any sort. Our community is very concerned by the tendency to communalize the violence in some pockets of BTAD," Alam observed.
SAGMDJP and organisations representing non-Muslim indigenous communities including Moran, Motok, Sonowal Kacharis and Dimas had a daylong meeting here on Friday for cementing the ties between the ethnic groups and fight against the communal elements working against the interest of indigenous Muslims.
"Even indigenous Muslims had suffered earlier in BTAD conflict primarily because of mistaken identity. We as indigenous Muslims are also threatened by the unabated influx from Bangladesh. Indigenous communities should not allow any divisive forces to work against our interest," added the SAGMDJP president.
Assamese Muslims slam Ajmal for 'communalizing' violence in BTC areas - Times Of India