Assam Governor cooks up a new storm

A day after his controversial remark that Hindustan is for Hindus, Assam governor P.B. Acharya stirred a fresh controversy here on Sunday by stating that Indian Muslims who feel persecuted in India are free to go to Pakistan.

His comments drew sharp criticism from the Congress which alleged that it was reflective of the divisive ideology of the RSS and BJP which has led to incidents like the Dadri lynching.

The governor’s attempts to clarify his remarks of Saturday stoked the controversy after he said that “Muslims in India are free to go anywhere... If they want to go to Pakistan, Bangladesh, they are free to go.” He had been quoted as saying on Saturday that “Hindustan is for Hindus. There is nothing wrong with that. Hindus from different countries can stay here. They cannot be outsiders.”

Mr Acharya, while clarifying his remark that Hindustan is for Hindus, told reporters that any Indian-origin people persecuted in Bangladesh or anywhere else in the world have a legitimate right to return to India for shelter. “I didn’t mean Hindustan is for Hindus only, persecuted Hindus anywhere have a right to seek shelter here,” he said. When asked if Muslims persecuted in Bangladesh are also welcome, he said, “Why not Taslima Nasreen has come to India... Originally Bangladesh was part of India and the people were Indian. But during Partition a large number of Indian Muslims went to Pakistan.”

Reiterating that India remains the world’s most tolerant nation, Mr Acharya, however, said that if any Muslim in India feels he is being persecuted, he is free to go to Pakistan, or for that matter to any country in the world, for shelter. In an obvious attempt to clarify his controversial remarks, which invited criticism, Mr Acharya warned of forces inimical to India’s development and called upon people to discourage such elements from taking centre-stage. “There may be a few elements with an international agenda who are trying to derail the entire process. They also intend to see that the Northeast remains a troubled zone,” Mr Acharya said, though he declined to name the forces “inimical” to the interests of Assam and the Northeast.

“These elements should not be entertained at all,” the governor said. “Despite extra time allotted to complete the updating of the NRC, reports suggest that the work will not be completed within the stipulated time frame. Considering its importance and urgent need, the completion of the work needs to be expedited,” he added.

The updated NRC should not have a single foreigner and all legitimate Indians should be included in the list so that the 2016 Assam Assembly election can be held with an updated NRC, Mr Acharya said. “It is not a question of religion. It is a question of nationalism and security. Inclusion of foreigners and omission of Indians will be detrimental to the security of India. A proper NRC may prove to be the beginning of a vibrant and strong Assam and Northeast,” he said. Mr Acharya also said he had called the NRC state coordinator, Mr Prateek Hajela, and asked him to expedite the process.