GUWAHATI: The Assam Linguistic Minority Development Board (ALMDB) has defended its move to offer a one-time cash incentive to poor Hindu couples who entered into inter-community marriages. ALMDB chairman and former MLA, Alok Kumar Ghose, said the ALMDB is a government entity set up purely for the development of linguistic minorities in Assam.
“This board is for the development of linguistic minorities. So, the question of keeping the scheme open to Muslims doesn’t arise,” Ghose told this newspaper.The reaction came as the All Assam Minority Students’ Union had described the government’s move as “divisive” while opposition Congress said the ruling BJP was trying to appease some people ahead of Assembly elections in the state due early next year.
“You will find plenty of cases where a married Hindu woman or married Hindu couple being deprived of property rights by their families for entering into inter-community marriages. As a result, they suffer a lot but they have the right to live. We want to give them one-time financial assistance so they can earn a living by doing some petty business,” Ghose said.