AASU slams Mahanta for ‘betraying’ anti-migrant cause

Mahanta, who has returned to public life after about 11 months of self-imposed exile following the scandal about his alleged second marriage, was last week stopped by AASU activists at Baihata Chairali, about 40 km from here, when he was on a trip to some lower Assam districts.

AASU advisor Samujjal Bhattacharya says Mahanta had ‘‘done nothing’’ to get the IMDT Act revoked when he was in power for two terms. ‘‘The Centre had promised to scrap the Act, which is a major hurdle in the way of identifying and throwing out Bangladeshi migrants. But Mahanta as chief minister remained silent on the issue,’’ Bhattacharya complained.

Student leaders have said some of the major clauses of the Assam Accord, signed on August 15, 1985, remain unimplemented ‘‘because the AGP ignored the issues when it was in power’’.

Mahanta, however, has hit back saying his government had filed a petition in the Supreme Court praying for revoking of the Act in 1999. Incidentally, the Assam government has changed its stand since and had submitted a revised petition before the apex court last year, after the Congress came to power, saying the state government is against scrapping the Act.

Mahanta has also said it is not proper for AASU leaders to blame the AGP for non-implementation of some provisions of the Assam Accord.