Pankaj Nath, Assam: An RSS worker of Assam began a 335-hour hunger strike outside the Assam Secretariat in Dispur on Sunday to protest Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s July 10 remarks about Paresh Barua, the chief of the banned militant group ULFA (Independent). The hunger strike was announced by Hiteshwar Chakrabarty, who began fasting at 11 a.m. on August 16 and said he will continue until 10 a.m. on August 30.Chakrabarty described the chief minister’s public comment — in which Mr. Sarma reportedly referred to Paresh Barua as “Biplabi” (revolutionary) and urged people to put up his pictures on walls — as “shameful and unfortunate.” He questioned whether it is appropriate to publicly glorify a former leader associated with a banned organisation, given ULFA (Independent)’s long history of militancy and violence in Assam. During his protest, Chakrabarty recalled past killings of RSS leaders allegedly linked to ULFA attacks. He cited the August 16, 1991 Borpeta Road attack that killed RSS leader Pramod Narayan Dixit and the August 30, 2005 killing of RSS worker Shukleshwar Medhi in Nalbari while he was on his way to school. Chakrabarty accused insurgents of having killed several senior RSS leaders and activists over the years. Chakrabarty has demanded a public apology from Chief Minister Sarma and has said the chief minister should resign if he does not apologise. He also urged authorities to arrest Paresh Barua under national security laws. Raising a consistency issue, Chakrabarty asked how a state chief minister could publicly advocate displaying the image of a leader of a banned armed group while other citizens have faced legal action for similar expressions of support. Chakrabarty said he deliberately began the fast on August 16 to coincide with the Dixit killing anniversary and will end it on August 30 to mark the anniversary of Medhi’s death. The protest has drawn media attention and local residents to the Assam Secretariat, and the matter has become a focal point for both political and legal debate in the state.
