Guwahati, Oct 27: The political parties including ruling BJP and opposition Congress are now engaged in war of words over ‘Miya Museum’ issue after a Congress MLA proposal to set up a museum reflecting the culture and heritage of the people living in Char-Chaporis of Assam on the premises of Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati.
Reacting over Miya Museum, Assam Finance minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said that, the Assam government will not allow to establish any Miya Museum or other Museum on the premises of Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra.
Rejecting the proposal of Congress MLA Sherman Ali Ahmed the Assam minister said that, Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra is a centre of Assamese civilization and culture and a particular community is now eying on it.
“It is not possible to set up a museum of other community’s civilization and culture on the premises of Kalakshetra. I sternly rejected this assumption. The Assam government will not allow to set up Miya Museum or any other Museum here. Not only it, the Assam government or Directorate of Museum will not establish Miya Museum in Assam,” Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
Congress MLA Sherman Ali Ahmed had sent a letter to the Director of Museum on October 18 and stated that, one Museum reflecting the culture and heritage of the people living in Char-Chaporis of Assam in the premises of Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra, Guwahati was recommended by Departmentally Related Standing Committee on Education, 2020-21 in its 47th report on Art and Culture (Grant No. 27).
“I would therefore like to request you kindly to expedite the process of establishment of the same,” the Congress MLA said in his letter.
The people those are living in Char-Chaporis (riverine islands) of the river Brahmaputra mostly belonging to Bengali speaking Muslims.
The riverine areas (island) of the river Brahmaputra, locally known as Char-Chapori cover about 3.60 lakh hectares of land and the chars follow a peculiar pattern of migration.
On the other hand, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Ripun Bora said that, it is not a proposal of the Congress party.
“One of the Congress party MLAs said this, but I would like to clear it that, it is not a proposal of the Congress party. The MLA had not mentioned any word of ‘Miya Museum’ in his letter. He has clearly mentioned about the recommendation of the Departmentally Related Standing Committee on Education, 2020-21 in its 47th report on Art and Culture (Grant No. 27),” Ripun Bora said.
Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra – located in Guwahati, is a cultural institution named after the saint scholar, social-religious reformer Srimanta Sankardeva.
