Chhath Puja Row: Assam CM asks both sides to mend differences

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday that the two sides at loggerheads over holding Chhath puja in eastern Assam's Tinsukia must find ways to mend their difference, as it will otherwise make people from outside reluctant to invest in the state. Two ministers will visit Tinsukia after panchayat polls and talk to both sides to find a solution, he said.

Sarma's statements came amid unceasing tension over holding the puja on the banks of Na-Pukhuri, a cluster of nine ponds and a historical monument in Tinsukia. There were heated exchanges between the Hindi-speaking community that sought to organise the puja and the people opposing it. On Thursday, the anti-talk faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (Ulfa Independent) also joined the organisations opposing the puja on the ground that Na-Pukhuri is an archaeological site. Chhath puja is performed near water bodies. It culminated on Friday.

"I am concerned and saddened that such incidents are happening between the two communities regularly," Sarma said. "This must not happen, I appeal to both communities if their misunderstanding continues, this will jeopardise investment prospects. Assam will suffer and people from outside will be reluctant to invest here," he said.


Several organisations, including the Ulfa-Independent, had earlier opposed holding of a Bihar Diwas function in Tinsukia on March 22, which led the ruling-BJP to cancel it.