BTC speaker slams secretariat arson, alleges planned assassination plot amid violent ST-status protest

BTC Assembly Speaker Tridip Daimary inspected the damages caused during the arson incident on November 29 at the BTC Secretariat and strongly condemned the attack. He stated that such acts of aggression under the guise of democratic protest were unacceptable and demanded the immediate arrest of the perpetrators. Daimary further revealed that there had been a planned attempt to assassinate prominent Bodo representatives.
 

The incident occurred when thousands of agitated Bodo students, led by the Tribal Students’ Union, marched from Bodoland University at Rangalikhata, Debargaon, to the BTC Secretariat in Bodofa Nagar. The protest was against the Assam government’s decision to grant Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to six communities, which student groups claimed undermined the rights and political safeguards of existing tribal communities.
 

As the procession advanced through Dewargaon and JD Road, protesters raised intense slogans targeting BTR Chief Executive Member Pramod Boro, former CEM Hagrama Mohilary, Deputy CEM Gobinda Basumatary, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Education Minister Ranoj Pegu, and MLA Rongjagot Narzary. Slogans like “Hagrama Mohilary go back,” “Pramod Boro go back,” “Down with Assamese Government,” “Cancel ST status for six communities,” and “We want justice” reverberated across Kokrajhar, heightening tensions.

 

The protest escalated when demonstrators breached the main entrance of the BTC Secretariat and surged into the premises. Security personnel, including commandos and Assam Police, struggled to contain the crowd as the situation intensified.
 

A day after the violent attack on the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Secretariat by alleged students' body, authorities have enforced stringent security measures around the complex, completely restricting public entry into the premises.
 

The incident occurred ahead of the scheduled BTC budget session, which was set to begin on Monday, December 1. In response to the vandalism allegedly carried out by a student organisation, repair and restoration efforts have already commenced to address the damages.
 

BTC officials have hinted that legal action will be initiated against those involved in the attack. Security personnel continue to guard the Secretariat as investigations proceed.