The demonstration, organised by several influential Tai Ahom organisations and the All Tai Ahom Students' Union saw protesters marching
Assam Tai Ahom protest in Dibrugarh seeking ST status (Image Source: Local Arrangement)
The demonstration, organised by several influential Tai Ahom organisations including the Tai Ahom Yuba Parishad, Assam (TAYPA) and the All Tai Ahom Students' Union (ATASU), saw protesters marching through the town with burning torches while chanting slogans of "No ST, No Rest."
"For over a decade since 2014, we have waited for the BJP to fulfill its promise of granting ST status to the Tai Ahom community. We will not tolerate this betrayal any longer. If our demands are not met soon, the Tai Ahoms will boycott the BJP in the 2026 Assembly polls. They will face severe backlash," Deep Dowerah, a member of Tai Community.
The BJP had pledged ST status for six Assam communities—Tai Ahoms, Mottocks, Koch Rajbongshis, Chutias, Morans, and Tea Tribes—during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign. However, despite repeated assurances over the years, the Tai Ahoms, who ruled Assam for six centuries under the historic Ahom dynasty, along with the five other groups, remain excluded from the ST list.
The Tai Ahom community wields considerable electoral influence in upper Assam, particularly in districts such as Sivasagar, Charaideo, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Golaghat, Tinsukia, Dhemaji, and Lakhimpur. Political analysts note that the community plays a decisive role in determining election outcomes in several Assembly constituencies across these regions.
As the 2026 Assembly elections approach, the BJP faces mounting pressure to address the long-standing demand or risk losing a significant vote bank that has traditionally supported the party in upper Assam's politically crucial constituencies.
