The granting of “schedule status” to the Bodos under the new Bodo Accord has become a bone of contention for the Karbis living in the Karbi Anglong area. The new Bodo Accord has given the “schedule status” to the Bodos living in Karbi Anglong, hitherto an exclusive domain of the Karbis so far.

The initial spark came from the “anti-talk” faction of the United People’s Democratic Solidarity (UPDS) with the armed wing of the organization Karbi National People’s Association (KNPA) urging the elected MPs and MLAs to either scrap the clause or face the bullets. With the Karbi Students Association (KSA) supporting the claims of the UPDS, the controversy is snowballing.

UPDS staged a two-day bandh on March 21 and March 22. It contends that the Accord was a “conspiracy” to siphon off Bodo Kachary in the Karbi Anglong and NC Hills and a device to escalate the ethnic cleansing of the Karbis.

Various factions of KSA aver that Bodos were not a large group  in Karbi Anglong before the area was carved out in 1951-52. Influx from outside swelled the Bodo ranks. Karbis view the development as a threat to the “communal equilibrium” of the Karbi society.

Argues UPDS:  “The increasing population of the Bodos is affecting the socio, cultural and political   map of Karbi Anglong and NC Hills. This has contributed to ethnic clashes, which have claimed 100 Karbi lives since 1994. Clause Eight of the Accord on   BTC will encourage more one- sided violence”.

The situation is a bit complicated with the emergence of Karbi Students and Youth Forum (KYSF). Its entry was heralded with by a 12-hour bandh on March 27. Like UPDS, the KYSF also wants scrapping of Clause eight.

The forum holds the clause as yet another manifestation of Government’s dubious tactics to divide and sabotage the genuine demands of the hills people. “By not giving priority to the autonomous state demand the Government has frustrated the hills people”.