'I’ll Walk To Jail Myself If Proven Guilty’: ABSU Chief Hits Back As Hagrama Vows Probe Into BTC Secretariat Vandalism

Guwahati: The political temperature in Bodoland soared on Tuesday as BTC chief Hagrama Mohilary and All Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU) president Dipen Boro traded sharp accusations over the violent storming of the BTC Secretariat in Kokrajhar on November 29.

Speaking to reporters in Dalbari, Baksa, an angry but composed Mohilary declared the November 29 vandalism “pre-planned” and pointed fingers directly at ABSU and its political ally, the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL).

“It was orchestrated. ABSU and UPPL are involved. We are forming an inquiry commission. Who instigated it, how the plan was made – everything will come out in the open,” Mohilary said.

“The law will decide arrests. The public will soon see this staged drama for what it is,” Mohilary also said.

Hours later, at Bodofa House in Kokrajhar, a visibly hurt Dipen Boro fired back, calling the allegations “unfortunate and painful.”

“We were in a closed-door meeting with 25 organisations when we first heard students were marching. We never want violence in a peaceful movement,” Boro told journalists, his voice cracking with emotion.

“If even one per cent proof is found against ABSU, I will resign today and walk straight to jail myself,” Boro said.

At the heart of the unrest is deep anxiety over a Group of Ministers’ (GoM) report that recommends Scheduled Tribe status for six communities – a move many existing ST groups fear will water down their constitutional safeguards.

On November 29, hundreds of agitated students from Bodoland University and local colleges broke through police lines, forced open the Secretariat gates and ransacked offices. The district administration later clamped prohibitory orders.

As both sides dig in, ordinary Bodo families watch with growing unease. “We just want our children’s future protected without brothers fighting brothers,” said a shopkeeper in Kokrajhar who asked not to be named.