Assam: Koch-Rajbongshi leaders quit UPPL over party's 'silence' on ST status demand
Guwahati: Over 25 senior Koch-Rajbongshi leaders resigned from the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) on Sunday, citing the party’s unclear position on the long-standing demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for six communities of Assam, including their own.
“The party has not clarified its stand. We cannot remain indecisive when our identity is at stake,” the leaders told the media.
The UPPL faces a notable change following the mass resignation announced at a press conference in Sidli, ahead of upcoming political events in the Bodoland region.
A large delegation of community leaders, led by former AKRASU president and chief advisor Arun Kumar Roy and senior leader Sribas Barman, declared that they were resigning from the UPPL with immediate effect.
They were joined by central committee member Kusumbar Choudhury, leaders Samiran Singha, Diganta Roy, and 22 other office-bearers from district, block, and primary units.
The resigning members said their decision followed “long internal discussions” and was guided by “community interest above party loyalty.” They accused UPPL president Pramod Boro of remaining silent on whether the party supports granting ST status to five major communities, including the Koch-Rajbongshi.
They added that calls for unity from organizations such as AKRASSS and the Koch-Rajbongshi Liberation Organisation (KLO)/NDFB faction played a significant role in their decision.
According to them, this moment demands “collective strength” to intensify the community’s decades-long struggle for constitutional recognition.
The leaders urged every Koch-Rajbongshi holding a post in any UPPL organizational structure, from village to central level, to resign immediately.
They said that only a consolidated movement could ensure justice for the community.
The resigning leaders also condemned the vandalism at the BTC Secretariat in Kokrajhar on Friday, where a section of Bodoland University students protesting against the ST status proposal allegedly engaged in destructive acts.
“Violence weakens democratic movements. Such incidents only divide communities further,” the leaders said, adding that the issue must be addressed through debate, not destruction.
The sudden, collective resignation poses a major challenge for the UPPL, the ruling party in the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), at a time when the ST status issue has sparked intense political and ethnic debates across Assam, the leaders said.
The Koch-Rajbongshi leaders added they would continue organizing community meetings and public outreach until the government offers a “clear, committed roadmap” on the ST status question.