GUWAHATI: Assam has a new political party called “Asom Gana Mancha” (AGM) amidst talks by All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) that it is working with cross-sections of the society to form a “political alternative”.
Simanta Kumar Dutta, a leader of the AGM, said the party would work towards safeguarding the rights of indigenous people.
“The Asom Gana Mancha will contest in all 126 seats in the 2021 Assam elections. Its aim is to ensure the protection of the rights and interests of all indigenous people,” he told journalists.
The party has been floated amidst the widespread protests in the state against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) which will grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who came to the state till December 31, 2014.
The midwifery for the other regional political parties in the anti-CAA battlefield is being conducted by a motley of leaders from cross-sections of the society, led by the AASU.
There are film personalities, singers, musicians, intellectuals, academicians, lawyers, students, among others.
Last week, the AASU had said that the work towards floating the party would begin after February.
If it sees the light of the day, it is likely to create a problem for Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) which was also the brainchild of the AASU.
The AGP, born out of the Assam Agitation of 1980s, is a constituent of the state’s BJP-headed ruling coalition.