GUWAHATI: The regional Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) has found itself on slipper ground vis-à-vis its alliance with the ruling BJP in Assam in the wake of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bold declaration in Silchar on Friday that the BJP-led government will strive to get Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 passed as soon as possible.
It is finally time for the AGP to now decide whether to continue to remain in the BJP-led coalition government in Assam or to snap ties with the saffron party in the light of its avowed stand against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016.
The basic objective of the Bill is to facilitate citizenship to persecuted minority community refugees from neighbouring countries –Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan — including Bengali-speaking Hindus from Bangladesh.
The AGP, an offspring Assam Agitation (1979-1985) against ‘illegal migrants’ from Bangladesh, has been asserting that it will snap ties with BJP-led government in Assam once the controversial Bill is tabled in the Parliament.
AGP says that it opposes the Bill because it intends to grant citizenship on the basis of religion which is against the principles of Indian Constitution.
Meanwhile, the BJP state unit in Assam had already made it clear that ball was in the AGP’s court to decide whether it will continue with its association the BJP-led government or not. Both the parties soured their relation after contesting the recent panchayat election separately despite being partners in the coalition government.
The AGP is obviously in the double bind now. It has to decide whether it continues to remain in the ruling dispensation led by the BJP thereby risking to lose its support base in Brahmaputra Valley or snap ties with the BJP protesting Citizenship Bill. Further dilly-dally will definitely put the regional party’s future at stake.