Assam: ABSU pushes for Bodo language in BTC electoral roll, cites legal provisions

The All Bodo Students Union (ABSU) has called on the Assam government to publish the Electoral Roll for the 2025 Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) elections in Bodo, alongside Assamese. The demand is rooted in the Assam Official Language (Amendment) Act, 2020, which recognises Bodo as an Associate Official Language.

 

ABSU president Dipen Boro addressed the media at Bodofa House, emphasising that Bodo should be used for all official purposes in districts and subdivisions with significant Bodo-speaking populations, not just in areas under the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).

 

Citing Section 5A of the 2020 amendment, Boro pointed out that the law permits Bodo for official work where the state government designates such usage, based on linguistic demographics. He stressed that as a language listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, Bodo is entitled to equal treatment alongside other official languages.

 

Boro also referred to a recent notification from the Assam Governor dated April 14, 2025, which mandates the use of Bodo in all official functions within the BTR, alongside English. While Assamese remains a compulsory language for state-wide official work, the notification marked a significant step toward linguistic inclusion in Bodo-majority areas.

 

Welcoming recent developments, ABSU highlighted the introduction of a 50-mark Bodo paper in the Assam Judicial Service Grade-III Mains Examination and a 20-mark Bodo paper in the Junior Administrative Assistant recruitment test for district courts. These changes, according to ABSU, reflect growing institutional recognition of the language.

 

The union urged the government to take consistent steps to implement existing legal provisions, ensuring Bodo speakers receive equitable linguistic representation in governance and public services.