Assam: BDF seeks white paper on village merger, DNLA deal clarity

Guwahati : The Barak Democratic Front (BDF), a political party active in lower Assam has urged the state government to release a white paper to address concerns over the alleged inclusion of 19 Barak Valley villages in Dima Hasao district and to disclose details of the Dimasa National Liberation Army (DNLA) peace agreement.

The demand comes amid conflicting statements from political leaders, fueling public confusion and anxiety.

BDF Chief Convenor Pradip Dutta Roy, in a press briefing, highlighted the inconsistency between Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s assurance that no villages would be merged without local consent and Minister Kaushik Roy’s claim that no such merger is under consideration.

Contradictory views from Dima Hasao organizations have further muddied the waters, raising fears of communal discord in the region.

“Barak Valley has been an island of peace, with Bengalis, Tea Tribes, and Dimasas coexisting harmoniously for decades,” Dutta Roy said, noting the region’s stability during events like the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition. He accused “vested interests” in Dispur of attempting to disrupt this harmony by fostering divisions among ethnic and linguistic groups.

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Dutta Roy criticized a “fringe Dimasa student group” for demanding the renaming of Bhasha Shahid Station, a tribute to language martyrs, after a Dimasa king. 

He proposed renaming Silchar Airport to honor Dimasa heritage as a less contentious alternative. He also suggested that, should Barak Valley become a separate administrative entity, Dima Hasao and Jiribam should remain part of it, citing historical ties among Bodo, Dimasa, Tripuri, and Bengali communities.

Urging transparency, Dutta Roy called for immediate clarification through a white paper and appealed for calm. BDF leaders Haradhan Dutta, Sajal Deb Roy, and Convenor Debayan Deb attended the briefing.