Consensus on most recommendations of Assam Accord Clause 6: State govt.

The Assam government and the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) have reached a consensus on “most recommendations” of a panel to implement Clause 6 of the Assam Accord of 1985, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

Clause 6 of the peace deal, which ended the violent six-year, anti-foreigner Assam Agitation, promised appropriate constitutional, legislative, and administrative safeguards to protect, preserve, and promote the cultural, social, and linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people.

Representatives of the government and the AASU held the third round of discussions on Clause 6 on Saturday. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma chaired the meeting.

“…Both the Assam government and the AASU reached consensus on most State-level recommendations of the high-level committee, with a new review committee to be formed for timely implementation,” a statement from the CMO read.

The Ministry of Home Affairs appointed the high-level committee in February 2020. Headed by retired Gauhati High Court judge Biplab Kumar Sarma, it was tasked with suggesting ways to implement the provisions of the touchy Clause 6.

“The AASU sought the formation of a committee to monitor the implementation of the recommendations. They also requested that a tripartite meeting among the State government, the Centre and the AASU be convened before January 31, 2026,” Assam Accord Implementation Minister Atul Bora said.

Mr. Bora is the president of the Asom Gana Parishad, a product of the Assam Agitation and an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He heads an eight-member sub-committee formed in 2021 tasked with submitting a report on how the recommendations can be implemented.

The sub-committee submitted its report during Saturday’s meeting.

“Our sub-committee identified 67 recommendations by the high-level committee, of which the State government can implement 40. Fifteen recommendations can be implemented only by the Centre, and the remaining 12 can be implemented jointly by the State government and the Centre,” Mr. Bora said.