The proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) in Arunachal Pradesh has triggered a fresh political confrontation, with the Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) demanding the withdrawal of security forces from affected areas, the release of detained activists and a halt to project-related action without explicit community consent.
The demands were raised at a news conference at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan in Itanagar on Monday by Takam Sanjoy, former Lok Sabha MP and former APCC president. Sanjoy criticised the deployment of police and paramilitary forces, the detention of local activists and administrative action against traditional village heads, known as gaon buras.
Sanjoy said the dispute involved indigenous rights, public trust and democratic consent. “Development cannot be built on fear, intimidation, and the erosion of indigenous rights. The people of Siang must have the final say over their land, rivers, and future,” he said.
The APCC submitted a 13-point charter of demands to the Centre and the Arunachal Pradesh government. It called for the withdrawal of security forces, the withdrawal of FIRs against peaceful protesters and the immediate release of four detained Adi activists — Adum Tayom, Omak Paron, Okut Paloh and Oson Paron.
The party also sought the reinstatement of suspended gaon buras and government employees. It demanded a written undertaking from the state government and the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation that the project would not proceed without explicit community consent.
The proposed project has also become linked to the management of a ₹350-crore Special Development and Livelihood Package. The APCC demanded a complete freeze and an independent audit of the package until its guidelines and beneficiary lists are verified by local Gram Sabhas. Sanjoy cautioned against using welfare funds to divide communities or pressure vulnerable families into signing consent agreements.
The party further called for the re-establishment of the traditional Kebang system, which it said was necessary to protect customary governance. The demand places local institutions at the centre of the dispute over how a major infrastructure project should be negotiated and implemented in the Siang region.
Sanjoy said opposition to hydropower projects in the region was not new, recalling objections raised by the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum between 2013 and 2015. He acknowledged national security concerns associated with China’s proposed upstream dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo, but said strategic considerations could not override environmental scrutiny and public consultation.
He warned that the confrontation in Upper Siang could lead to wider anti-dam protests across Arunachal Pradesh. The APCC said its state president, Bosiram Siram, would lead a delegation to submit a memorandum to the Governor, the chief minister and the chief secretary, seeking urgent intervention. APCC general secretary Kon Jirjo Jotham said the Congress would continue supporting affected communities through democratic and legal channels.
