Assamese race will become weak for a long time if delimitation exercise is carried out: Sarma

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Himanta Biswa Sarma said that if delimitation exercise is carried out on the basis of 2011 census and not 2001, at least 16 to 20 seats of Northern and Upper Assam will go to Lower Assam and that to in places where Assamese people are minority. All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) has filed a case in the Supreme Court against the draft delimitation proposal of Assembly and Parliamentary Constituencies in Assam.

Regional party Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) had filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court of India seeking stay on the constituency delimitation process. Sarma told media persons on Tuesday, “I have lost my constituency as per the draft proposal.

I have been representing Jalukbari constituency for the last 25 years. It is really sad; a lot of people think that they cannot win in a new constituency and they are making an unnecessary issue out of it.” He added, “If this delimitation does not take place, the Assamese race will become weak for a long time.

Those seats under us and with every election Assamese people are losing at least five seats and at this rate it will not take much time to come down to 65 seats.” Sarma, “Even after the Assam agitation in 1985 when election was held despite all the Assamese people voting for Asom Gana Parishad, it can wrest only 58 seats. This means political rights have moved away from the hands of Assamese people.” He said that in Barak valley and other places, Indian origin people have lost their political rights.

“In 2007 the delimitation proposal which was mooted out during the Congress regime, the Assamese race would have lost everything. Some organisations have said that delimitation should have been done on the basis of the 2011 census however reality is we have not