Chakmas, Hajongs not a threat to indigenous people, says report

The Asian Centre for Human Rights has asserted that it is not the Chakmas and Hajongs of Arunachal Pradesh but other non-tribals who pose a bigger threat to the indigenous people of that state.

The Chakmas and Hajongs, who had migrated from erstwhile East Pakistan during 1964-1968 to Arunachal Pradesh, do not pose any threat to the indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh, the ACHR said in its report ‘Arunachal Pradesh: Not the Chakmas/Hajongs but other non-tribals pose bigger threat to indigenous peoples’.

The issue of Chakmas and Hajongs posing a threat has come to the spotlight following a Supreme Court judgement on September 17 last to implement its 1996 judgement directing that their citizenship applications be processed, an ACHR release said on Thursday.

“Not a single application has been processed since 1996,” added the release of the ACHR, an NGO which has Special Consultative Status with the UN ECOSOC.

Lamenting the alleged delay in integration of Chakmas and Hajongs due to filing of review and curative petitions on the apex court’s judgment, the ACHR asserted “instead of resolving the problems, the Union of India and the State of Arunachal Pradesh want to drag the problem for political benefits”.

The report stated that “the population of Chakmas and Hajongs which was 14,888 during 1964-69 only increased to 47,471 as per the 2011 census i.e. 218 per cent in 47 years”.

“In comparison, the population of other non-tribals such as Adivasis, Assamese, Nepalese, Muslims, Marwaris, Biharis, etc, in the state increased by 955 per cent during the same period i.e from 36,614 persons in 1961 to 3,84,435 persons in 2011 as per the census”, the ACHR asserted.

“If the population growth were to pose a threat to indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh, Chakmas/Hajongs surely do not pose a threat to the local indigenous peoples of Arunachal Pradesh”, stated Suhas Chakma, Director of the Asian Centre for Human Rights.

“It is the non-Chakma/Hajong general population whose populations have been increasing rapidly.”

A total of 47,471 Chakmas and Hajongs cannot pose a threat to 13,83,727 persons of the State as per 2011 census, Mr Chakma added.