GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 22nd Nov: The national capital witnessed a strong display of Northeast tribal unity on Saturday as Bodo organisations staged a sit-in protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding the time-bound implementation of the 2020 Bodo Accord and the passage of the 125th Constitutional Amendment Bill in the upcoming winter session of Parliament.
Led by the All Bodo Students Union (ABSU), the protest saw hundreds gather from Assam and neighbouring states to urge the Centre to strengthen the financial and administrative powers of Sixth Schedule councils in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram — a core promise of the peace deal signed to end decades of insurgency.
Speaking to ANI at the protest site, ABSU President Dipen Boro said that the slow progress on the Accord has generated frustration in tribal regions that expected major institutional and financial reforms.
“More than half a dozen clauses of the 2020 peace deal have not been implemented properly. As per the 125th Amendment and Article 280, the financial and administrative powers of Sixth Schedule councils must be strengthened,” Boro said.
He added that militant organisations from four Northeast states had laid down arms and joined the peace process trusting the government’s commitments. “We have met the Union Home Minister several times. More than 12 rounds of tripartite review meetings have been held with the Union Home Secretary, yet significant clauses remain pending,” he said.
Days before the protest, the ABSU hosted a national seminar at the Constitution Club of India, bringing together leaders of tribal autonomous councils, constitutional experts, parliamentarians and movement organisations to build a unified Northeast voice. The seminar culminated in a joint appeal to the Centre and the Assam government to introduce the Amendment Bill and complete the Accord within the previously committed timeline.
In his keynote address at the seminar, Dipen Boro reminded participants of the long struggle behind Bodoland’s political rights:
“These amendments determine how councils receive funds, exercise powers and plan development. They affect village governance, municipal structures and key institutions across Sixth Schedule areas. The Bodo Accord promised a stronger council, wider subjects, land rights and a clear mechanism for rehabilitation and development — progress is partial and unfinished.”
The gathering featured prominent leaders including Pramod Boro, former Chief Executive Member of the Bodoland Territorial Region and a signatory to the Accord; Sukla Charan Noatia, Minister for Tribal Welfare and Minorities, Tripura; Pyniaid Sing Syiem, former CEM of KHADC; and senior Supreme Court and High Court advocates who backed the demand for speedy constitutional reform.
The protest ended with a resounding call for the introduction of the 125th Constitutional Amendment in Parliament and stronger financial and administrative provisions for all ten Sixth Schedule councils.
With Northeast tribal organisations signalling a united front, pressure is now squarely on the Union government to respond — and the winter session of Parliament will be watched closely.
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