Autonomous Districts and/or Ethnic Homelands: An Ethnographic Account of the Genesis of Political Violence in Assam (North-East India) Against the Normative Frame of the Indian Constitution

Abstract

AbstractAutonomous arrangements have always been a matter of contention in Northeast India. In the federal unit of Assam, conflict and inter-ethnic tensions have been markers of a peculiar kind of constitutional politics that are unable to resolve competing claims for resources and power in a manner that prevents violent political mobilisation. This article examines the trajectory of political events in Karbi Anglong, the largest autonomous district in Assam, and traces the course of social and cultural changes that have affected politics in the district. The article also looks at possible ways out of the impasse created by constitutional political vocabularies in the said district.