Assam Assembly passes 6 education bills amid opposition walkout

In addition, two other bills—the Azim Premji University Bill, 2025, and the North Eastern Regional Institute of Management (NERIM) University Bill, 2025—both introduced by Education Minister Ranoj Pegu, were passed by voice vote on the final day of the Winter Session.

After more than four hours of debate on the four bills introduced by Education Minister Ranoj Pegu, members of the Congress, CPI(M), and Independent MLA Akhil Gogoi expressed discontent that none of their proposed amendments had been accepted by the government.

Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia of the Congress pressed for a vote on the amendments, a demand supported by CPI(M) legislator Manoranjan Talukdar and the Independent member.

As Speaker Biswajit Daimary moved forward with the process of passing the bills, Saikia declared that the opposition would not withdraw its amendments. In response, Daimary ordered all doors of the House to be shut immediately, preventing any MLA from entering or leaving during the proceedings.

However, the opposition benches alleged that about 10 ruling BJP legislators entered the House even after the Speaker’s order. The treasury benches, however, refuted the charge.

As the Speaker maintained he was unaware of any late entry, opposition members moved to the Well of the House and staged a walkout.

Earlier, the members of the AIUDF were suspended for displaying placards, citing concerns over the future of teachers and educational institutions. Among the amendments moved by the opposition were relaxation of the cut-off year for provincialisation of educational institutions and posts of teachers, bringing down minimum enrollment criteria and inclusion of madrassas under the acts.

Minister Pegu, in his reply, maintained that these changes cannot be made as it will entail legal problems.

(with inputs from PTI)