AASU warns parties: Dont give communal colour to ISI issue

GUWAHATI, August 10: The activities of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in Assam is an issue concerning the security of the nation and no political party or organisation should try to give a communal colour to it, according to the advisor of the All-Assam Students' Union (AASU), Samujjal Bhattacharyya. Bhattacharyya pointed out that certain political parties and organisations of the state were trying to give a communal colour to the issue of arrest of four ISI men in the city. He said that AASU would thwart any move to create communal tension in Assam on the issue. Bhattacharyya lauded the Assam police for managing to nab the ISI personnel, but said if immediate steps were not taken to solve the problem of infiltration of foreigners into Assam, the situation in the state would become worse than the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. He alleged that the Congress and the Left parties were primarily responsible for the present situation in the state as these had been supporting the foreigners to create a votebank. He said the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) government too had failed to take a strong and clear-cut stand on the issue of infiltration of foreigners into the state. He pointed out that AASU had been alleging that the Pakistani ISI was involved in uniting Bangladeshi nationals in Assam and the recent arrests of the ISI officers justified the allegation. The arrests also justified the Assam agitation and the report of the state Governor, Lt Gen SK Sinha. The Governor had given a detailed report to the President on the threat posed to the security of the nation by infiltration of Bangladeshi nationals into Assam. Bhattacharyya alleged that the BJP-led government at the Centre had adopted double standards on the infiltration issue. He pointed out that the government had waged a full-scale war to deport a few thousand Pakistani intruders in Kargil but at the same time, it remained silent when lakhs of foreigners from Bangladeshis had intruded into Assam. He also demanded that the President should order Army operations in Assam to drive out foreigners from the state. Reacting to comments of certain political parties after the arrests of the ISI men in the city, Bhattacharyya said that if these persons were citizens of India, they should not be agitated over the arrests of the ISI officers. "The persons who gave confusing statements over the arrests of the ISI men are working more like spokesman of the foreigners," he said. The AASU also reiterated its demand for the implementation of the Assam Accord within a specific time-frame and repeal of the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act to solve the problem of infiltration. He said there was a vast difference in the attitude of indigenous Muslims and Bangladeshis and the indigenous people were totally against communal tension.