PPFA insists on detection of illegal migrants with 1951 cut-off year Guwahati: Patriotic People’s Front Assam (PPFA) reiterates its standto detect all immigrants from the then East Pakistan and laterBangladesh with the national cut-off year (1951) and urges the Uniongovernment in New Delhi to think about offering work permits (withoutvoting rights) to them in case their deportation becomes impossiblebecause of arising serious humanitarian and international crisis.The forum in a statement argues that the immigrants who entered Indiaafter 1951 till 16 December 1971 should be treated as East Pakistaninationals, as Bangladesh emerged as a sovereign nation only after 16December (not 25 March 1971 as often reported in the media), whenPakistani soldiers surrendered to the Muktijoddhas (forces ofBangladesh freedom struggle).“The volume of East Pakistani nationals (from 1951 to 16 December1971) must be identified on priority basis and they should bedeported. If we apprehend any unavoidable humanitarian crisis, thosepeople may be given work permits to stay in India but without thepower to participate in the State-recognized electoral process,” saidthe PPFA statement.It, however, strongly argues that the immigrants from Bangladesh (whocame after 16 December 1971) must be detected and deported. The forumalso appealed to Sarbananda Sonowal led government at Dispur tosupport the 1951 as cut-off year for detection of foreigners in theSupreme Court, as the case is presently in its jurisdiction.In another aspect, the forum commented that once the citizenshipamendment bills are duly passed in the Parliament, all the Hindu,Buddhist, Christian refugees should be rehabilitated with equaldistribution across the country.“Among them, those who prefer to stay legally in Assam should adoptAssamese language as their medium of instructions with an aim topromote the Assamese culture and thus contributing for a stronger andsafer India. It will also help removing the linguistic threatperception to the indigenous populace of the State,” asserted thestatement.As the spirit of Assam Movement (1979 to 1985) was to deport allforeigners with the cut-off year of 1951, for which over 850 martyrs,including Khargeswar Talukder being the first, sacrificed their lives,the forum finds reasons in supporting the same. However, the PPFAmaintains that it would abide by the verdict of the apex court overthe matter. Issued by Rupam Barua, Nava Thakuria, Pramod Kalita, JagadindraRaichoudhury, Anup Sarma, Ujjal Saikia, Anirban Choudhury, SabyasachiSharma, Dibson Barua, Bitupan Dutta, Tarali Chakrabarty, BhaswatiSarma etc for PPFA
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