SUMMARY
The conflict between Bodo originates in the territorial claim both tribal groups have on the highlands around the Brahmaputra River Valley in Assam state, India. This territorial claim has a historical motivation - the Bodos are native to Assam, while the Santhals have been brought over by British colonizers from other regions of India, mainly as tea farmworkers. While this territorial issue existed throughout the 20th century, as Bodos claimed Santhals were displacing them as the majority population in their former ancestral homelands, it was further compounded by a chain of additional events, leading to conflict. First, Northeastern India saw an increased level of militancy by various ethnic groups throughout the 1970s and 1980s, with a goal of obtaining territorial concessions from the central government. The success of those various groups made, at first the Bodos and afterward the Santhals organize into ethnic-based political and military groups that would challenge the government. A further step on the path to violence came as a direct result of the State of Assam establishing a non-autonomous Bodoland Executive Council (BEC) in 1993, in areas of Bodo majority, under the pressure of Bodo, and by promising that all localities with over 50% Bodos will be included in the BEC, it triggered a lengthy campaign of ethnic cleansing, as various Bodo groups would try to reach the target. Santhals were the primary targets, as they were seen as ‘tea people’, immigrants brought by the British and Indians, taking away land, resources and jobs from the native Bodos. Further, violence levels were increased by infighting between various Bodo groups acting within the Bodo community (such as the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NFDB) or the Bodo Liberation Tiger Force (BLTF)), each having different views of whether the Bodos should collaborate or not with the Assamese authorities. Attacked, Santhals responded similarly, by organizing militias for both self-defense and to attack Bodo positions, such as the Adivasi Cobra Force (ACF), leading to a severe spiral of violence that reached its peak in 1996 and 1998, leading to over 200 000 Internally Displaced Persons (over 45 000 of them still being housed in relief camps). The violence began to subside as the borders of BEC were delineated in 1999 and as the Government of India and the state of Assam took stronger measures for maintaining security and initiated negotiations with the militant groups. Violence between the two ethnic groups did not erupt significantly after 1999, even with the creation of a stronger Bodo Territorial Council in 2003.
Tactics employed by both Bodo were determined by their objectives of ethnic cleansing and by their severe lack of equipment. While the Bodo militancy had been somewhat organized, and had access to limited funding and at least some light weapons, the Santhal groups were hastily organized, with very little access to equipment – reports describe their organization as ‘rag-tag’, with many using traditional weaponry such as spears or arrows. Most attacks were targeted at villages and camps, with arson – particularly effective at emptying a camp – being a preferred tactic.
Violence was fairly localized - all incidents coded in the database, both in 1996 and 1998, taking place within the highlands of Kokrajhar district, in Northeastern India’s Assam state. No reports of violence between Bodo exist outside this relatively small region, despite the existence of a large Santhal population in various other states of India.
The non-state conflict between Bodo is first included in UCDP data in 1996. In May of that year, clashes between the two groups had resulted in more than 170 battle-related deaths.
