GUWAHATI, Nov. 18: The All-Bodo Students Union (ABSU), along with the joint signatories of the Bodo Peace Accord, will host a two-day national programme in New Delhi from November 20 to press the Union government for urgent delivery of obligations made under the agreement signed in 2020.
The gathering is set to bring together tribal representatives, political leaders, legal scholars, former negotiators and community groups from Assam and across the Northeast.
The initiative is set within a wider constitutional conversation on tribal autonomy, federal responsibility and the need to honour peace settlements beyond ceremonial affirmation.
The seminar will also spotlight concerns of 10 Sixth Schedule councils in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram as delays in the 125th Constitutional Amendment affect multiple tribal regions.
A distinguished delegation will take part, including tribal welfare minister Sukla Charan Noatia, former BTC CEM Pramod Boro, Member of Parliament Amarsing Tisso and Jayanta Basumatary, senior members of former NDFB factions, and representatives from UBPO, Bodo Sahitya Sabha and allied organisations.
The inaugural day at the Constitution Club of India will focus on the constitutional amendment linked to Article 280 and the Sixth Schedule, pending despite Cabinet clearance in 2019.
Discussions will cover the status of subjects promised to the Bodoland Territorial Region, incomplete council restructuring, deferred village and municipal bodies, and gaps in fiscal empowerment.
Provisions on rehabilitation, compensation, closure of legal cases, and support for former combatants remain incomplete while village delimitation, recruitment, cadre absorption and institutional expansion continue to await government approval.
The Rs 1,500-crore Special Development Package remains largely unused, reinforcing concern over implementation mechanisms and administrative delays.
On November 21, ABSU and allied organisations will gather at Jantar Mantar to register a peaceful and constitutional appeal for immediate action.
The accord was achieved after years of tension, negotiation and sacrifice. People believed that the Government of India would honour the promises transparently and without delay. Today, the outstanding clauses and silence around key decisions raise serious questions,” ABSU president Dipen Boro said.
“Our appeal is firm and lawful – notify the amendments, release the sanctioned funds, and restore faith in the agreement. Every citizen who trusted this settlement deserves a result, not another cycle of waiting. Credibility of the peace process rests on action,” Boro said.
The programme marks ABSU’s first national mobilisation since the accord came into force.
