By Bhupen Goswami

Guwahati :The All Assam Bengali Youth Students’ Federation wants State Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma as the Chief Minister of Assam.According to the Federation’s leaders, it is Himanta Biswa Sarma who is eligible for the CM’s position and not Sonowal. They added that Sarma would work for the sake of the Bengali community living in Assam. The students’ body also alleged that the due to the lackadaisical attitude of the Home department of the state government, the Bengali community is under serious threat and is living with fear after the publication of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).They also mentioned that only Himanta Biswa Sarma would be able to protect the insecure Bengali community which is why they want him as the Chief Minister of the state. Speaking with Inside Northeast, president of All Assam Bengali Youth Student Federation, Dipak Dey said, “We did not get any clear response from CM Sonowal after the NRC publication. His comments are still awaited on the exact number of detainees in the Detention Camps.

Earlier, only 300 people were detained in the camps, which has currently rose to over 700 and most of them are Hindu Bengalis.” Dey added, “On September 7, 2015, a notification was issued by the central government regarding the implementation of Passport Act 1920. However, this is not implemented in Assam. We sought a reply from the government and never received any response. Himanta Biswa Sarma is more vocal about issues concerning the public. He at least addresses the common people and expresses discontentment over issues. We have seen him speaking on the NRC-related issue. We can see that Sarma understands the emotion of the people, so we have recommended his name for the CM post.” Meanwhile, Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday announced that a new form of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill will be proposed in the Parliament. ddressing the media, Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “A new form of Citizenship Bill will be proposed that will have the cut off date of December 30, 2014. The people who have migrated prior to this date, will be eligible for citizenship.” He added that the newly drafted bill will not override Article 371 (A), Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, Tribal, and the Inner Line Permit (ILP), as committed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah during the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) Conclave. The new draft of the Bill will be largely accepted, he affirmed.Speaking along the lines of ILP, Sarma added, “In Assam, we don’t want the ILP, but in other Northeastern states, it will depend on the merits and demerits. But that won’t be linked to CAB. However, the existing ILP won’t be disturbed.” He also mentioned that the consultation of the drafting of the new bill is being held with all the stakeholders. Regarding the appeal for the excluded in the National Register of Citizens (NRC), the NEDA convenor said that the Register General of India (RGI) has to give the notification. He added that the directions of the Supreme Court will be taken into account for this.