Context: Recently, a confidential report on Assam Accord has released by the All Assam Students’ Union(AASU) which was a part of the Centre’s high-level committee on the implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.
Background

• A high-power committee was constituted by the Centre in July 2019 with 14 members and justice Sharma as its chairman for the implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.
• It had submitted its report to the Chief Minister of Assam in February 2020.

About Clause 6 of the Assam Accord

• It provides that appropriate constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards shall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people.
• It is one of the promises in the Assam Accord, a memorandum of settlement inked between the representatives of the All Assam Students’ Union, the Assam state government and the Government of India.
• The Clause that ended the anti-foreigners’ Assam agitation from 1979-1985.
• The bone of contention since the signing of the Accord was the definition of Assamese people. The committee tried to address this issue.

Key Recommendations of the Committee
The committee has proposed that the following be considered Assamese people for the purpose of Clause 6:

• Assamese community, residing in the Territory of Assam on or before January 1,1951 or
• Any indigenous tribal community of Assam residing in the territory of Assam on or before January 1,1951 or
• Any other indigenous community of Assam residing in the territory of Assam on or before January 1,1951 or
• All other citizens of India residing in the territory of Assam on or before January 1,1951 and Descendants of the above categories.

The committee has also proposed 80 to 100% reservation in the parliamentary seats of Assam, Assembly seats and local body seats be reserved for the Assamese people.

Land rights with restrictions imposed on transferring land by any means to persons other than Assamese people among other recommendations.