Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, in a sharp response to eminent lawyer Kapil Sibal’s controversial remark on Assam, said people without knowledge of the Northeastern State’s history should not speak.
While arguing about the migration issue during a hearing on the validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955, Sibal reportedly had said, “Assam originally was a part of Myanmar.”
“Those who have no knowledge of Assam’s history should not speak. Assam was never a part of Myanmar. There were clashes for a brief period. That was the only relation. Otherwise, I have not seen any data which stated that Assam was a part of Myanmar,” asserted Dr Himanta Sarma.
The brawl between firebrand leader and BJP Northeast strategist CM Himanta and lawyer, Rajya Sabha MP and former Congress leader Kapil Sibal also comes amid the crisis in Manipur where the issue of illegal immigrants from Myanmar is a huge factor in the violence.
Many Central leaders including Home Minister Amit Shah and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar have shared same sentiments regarding the entry of illegal immigrants that fuelled the unrest in the Northeast State.
Not only this, in fact Mizoram has taken in over 35,000 refugees from the junta-ruled Myanmar, where the military forces are fighting ethnic insurgent groups and pro-democracy rebels.
Additionally, new CM Lalduhoma is seeking cooperation from the Centre regarding the issues of refugees from Myanmar and Bangladesh, and displaced Kuki tribes from neighbouring crisis-hit Manipur who have taken shelter in Mizoram.
During the Supreme Court proceedings, Sibal had stressed regarding migration, “If you look at the history of Assam, you will realise that it is impossible to figure out who came when. Assam originally was a part of Myanmar. And it was way back in 1824 after the British conquered a part of the territory that a treaty was entered into by which Assam was handed over to the British.”
“You can imagine the kind of movements of people that must have taken place in the context of the then British empire. And if you jump to 1905, you have the partition of Bengal,” stated Sibal, who is also the lawyer of some members of the Kuki tribes in Manipur, following the Kukis’ ethnic clashes with Meiteis.
Brief Background Of Assam In Context Of Row
Assam suffered three three Burmese invasions between 1817 and 1826, during which time the Kingdom of Assam came under the control of Burma from 1821 to 1825.
In vernacular language, this period is popularly called Manor Din (Period of the Burmese) by the people of Assam and is remembered with horror.
The sharp drop in population due both to depredations as well emigrations left the erstwhile kingdom in shambles. It was the climactic period of the Ahom kingdom.
The British, who were earlier reluctant to colonise Assam, came into direct contact with a belligerent Burmese occupying force.
Following the First Anglo-Burmese War they annexed Assam and took Manipur as a subsidiary State.
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