Enact Bodo Accord Provisions Soon: BTR Envoy Demands From Amit Shah
Representatives of the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) from Assam met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday to discuss the implementation of provisions of the Bodo Accord swiftly.
The meeting took place at the official residence of the Union Home Minister in New Delhi today and was attended by the chief executive member (CEM) of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), Pramod Boro, and All Bodo Students' Union (ABSU) president Dipen Boro among others.
During the meeting, the envoy took up the issue of quick implementation of the Bodo Accord with Amit Shah. They also demanded that the population of Bodo people reside outside the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam.
With the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) leaders also in the meeting, the representatives demanded that Ranjan Daimary and other rebels of the armed separatist group under him be exonerated, in addition to the previous demands.
It may be noted that the first Bodo Treaty was signed in the year 1993 with the All Bodo Students' Union which led to the creation of a Bodoland Autonomous Council which had very limited political powers.
Subsequently in the year 2003, the second Bodo Accord was signed with an agreement to create a self-governing body for the Bodo areas in Assam. With this, the Bodoland Territorial Council came into existence that year and it held more financial and other powers.
In the year 2020, the third Bodo Accord was signed which renamed the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous District (BTAD) as the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).
The agreement promised more autonomy in terms of legislative, executive and administrative rights under the sixth schedule. It also allowed the expansion of the BTC territory in lieu of statehood.
The agreement also provided for the alteration of areas of BTAD including provisions for the Bodo population residing elsewhere in Assam outside the region. BTR includes the villages with majority Bodo population, however, geographically falling outside the BTAD region.