Dimapur, April 30: The election scene in Arunachal Pradesh turned murkier with the militant National Liberation Front of Arunachal backing the All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU)’s call for a boycott of the Lok Sabha poll to protest the inclusion of Chakma and Hajong refugees in the electoral rolls.
In a statement today, the militant group’s chairman, K.H. Tara, appealed to the people of the state to support the AAPSU. “Time has come to teach the Indian government a lesson,” he said.
The group’s show of solidarity with the student organisation is perceived to be a move to garner support by cashing in on public sentiments on the contentious decision to allow Chakmas and Hajongs to vote in the election to the state’s two Lok Sabha seats on May 5.
The National Liberation Front of Arunachal was formed on September 29, 1997, and is known to have 500 members who are based across the state.
A source said the group established a “rapport” with the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah) after Naga militants “arrested and imprisoned” Tara in January.
Speaking exclusively to The Telegraph here, the militant leader warned the people of Arunachal Pradesh that they would be labelled “traitors” if they did not support the AAPSU.
Tara urged students, public leaders and all “right-thinking citizens of Arunachal” to voluntarily support the AAPSU, which he described as an organisation “fighting for the welfare and future of Arunachal Pradesh”.
The militant leader said the Chakmas and Hajongs could “overwhelm the indigenous population” someday and the people should wake up to this danger. “This refugee issue is pending due to the weakness of the state government in particular and the Indian government in general.”
A four-member delegation of the AAPSU went to New Delhi in the first week of this month and met deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, who promised them that the Centre would consider their demands after the Lok Sabha elections. The student organisation, however, decided to boycott the poll if the right to franchise granted to the Chakma and Hajong communities was not withdrawn.
Tara said the AAPSU could not be faulted for taking such a decision. “No solution, no election,” he declared.
The militant leader said the Chakmas and Hajongs settled in Lohit and Miao should leave the state “before it is too late”. Trying to drive home the point in a jocular vein, he added: “The weather in Arunachal does not suit them at all.”
On Wednesday, a delegation of New Delhi-based Chakma leaders set out on a mission to build bridges with the state’s indigenous communities, whose animosity towards the refugee tribe has increased since it earned the right to vote. The team comprises members of the Committee for Citizenship Rights of Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh.