'Hindi-speaking in Assam killed on ISI orders'

Guwahati, Aug 17: The BJP today alleged that the militants were running a parallel government in Assam and were targeting the Hindi-speaking population in the state to make room for the illegal Bangladeshi settlers.

They also slammed the state government for 'working under pressure from the ISI' and claimed that the militant outfits in the state were directed by personnel of the agency based in Bangladesh.

Addressing a press conference here today after visiting the violence-hit Karbi Anglong district yesterday, where 29 Hindi-speaking people had been killed since August 8, the central committee members of the BJP said the militants were trying to mislead the people with an impression that there was a divide between the Hindi-speaking and indigenous people of Assam.

Rajya Sabha member Kalraj Mishra, who led the eight-member legislators' delegation, said, ''When we talked to the Hindi-speaking people as well as the local people during our visit to the effected areas yesterday, we realised that there was no division among them.'' He said the conspiracy to project a false impression that the locals resented the Hindi-speaking people was hatched by Bangladesh-based ISI agents and they were carrying out their mission of dividing Assam along those lines through the militant outfits in the state.

''This is being done in a planned manner to shatter Assam. Their plan is to kill the Hindi-speaking people first, then the local people and finally settle the Bangladeshi people on Assam's soil,'' he added.

He maintained that the Bangladeshi forces wanted to break the economic backbone of the state along with terrorising the people. Mr Mishra alleged that the militants were running a parallel government and the Congress-led state as well as the Centre was not taking the issue seriously.

''The Chief Minister's statements clearly indicate that the state government was working under ISI pressure. Such a government which cannot protect its people and bows to militants' pressure should resign immediately,'' he asserted.

Pointing out that the Prime Minister himself represented Assam in the Rajya Sabha, the BJP senior leader said the situation in Assam was also threatening internal security of the country. Underscoring the fact that the militants who carry out these killings were rarely arrested, Mr Mishra said it smacked of the ''insincerity'' of the state government. Drawing a parallel with the Mumbai blasts, in which the main accused have been held, he said, ''We never hear of any militants directly linked being arrested in Assam.

He alleged that there were no security forces in the effected areas, where the BJP team visited yesterday and castigated Union Home Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal for suggesting creation of a separate police station for the Hindi-speaking population in Karbi Anglong. ''The Union Minister should concentrate on providing complete security to all the people in the district. There is no division among the people along linguistic lines,'' he noted.

The minister has himself admitted that police stations were not adequate and more were needed, Mr Mishra added.

The BJP team also called on state governor Lt Gen (retd) Ajai Singh today and urged the latter to ensure security in the district, especially since Karbi Anglong was a Sixth Schedule district and the Governor was the supreme authority.

Mr Mishra said the team urged the governor to ensure, complete security in the district, plan out economic package for rehabilitation of the affected people and restore back confidence in the mind of the people in the area.

UNI