Bodo community protests land allotment to APDCL, opposes rehabilitation of evicted families in Assam's Kokrajhar

Hundreds of members of the Bodo community staged a massive protest at Malgaon along the Kokrajhar district border on July 12, opposing the allotment of Tribal Belt and Block land to the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) and the proposed rehabilitation of 93 evicted Muslim families from Kaimari in the area.

The protesters alleged that the Assam Government and the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Government had allocated land within the Greater Malgaon Tribal Belt and Block, which has enjoyed Tribal Belt and Block status since 1984, for APDCL projects and for resettling non-tribal evicted families.

Carrying placards and raising slogans, the demonstrators demanded protection of Tribal Belt land and urged the government to withdraw the land allotment. Protesters shouted slogans such as "Protect Tribal Belt Land," "APDCL Go Back," "Down with the Assam Government," "Down with the BTC Government," and "We will give our blood, but not our land."

The Bodo community maintained that Tribal Belt and Block land is constitutionally protected for indigenous tribal communities and expressed strong opposition to any move they believe could alter its status or affect the rights of tribal residents.

The protesters warned that they would continue their democratic agitation until the government withdraws the proposed land allotment and rehabilitation plan.