Guwahati, Nov 25: The five-day winter session of the Assam Legislative Assembly commenced on Tuesday, with the state government set to place two long-awaited reports on the 1983 Nellie massacre, which claimed over 2,000 lives and displaced nearly three lakh people.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, in a post on X, said, “Big changes coming this winter session. From safeguarding families to modernising laws. Assam is gearing up for one of its most transformative legislative sessions.”

The reports of the Tewary and Mehta Commissions both constituted to probe the Nellie massacre that occurred amid the six-year Assam agitation against foreigners will be tabled during the session. The state cabinet has decided to circulate the reports among MLAs and make copies available in the Assembly library. However, they will not be opened for discussion or debate in the House.

Sarma noted that the reports, commissioned by the then Asom Gana Parishad government, were previously unavailable in the public domain. “In 1987, the then chief minister had placed the report in the Assembly and promised printed copies later. However, those were never shared with MLAs or MPs, and the Assembly library does not possess a copy,” he said.

The Chief Minister recalled that Assam had witnessed unprecedented violence in 1983, during which more than 2,000 people were killed and nearly three lakh others took shelter in relief camps for months.

During the current session, 18 significant bills are expected to be introduced, including those related to anti-love jihad, anti-polygamy, amendments to land and revenue regulations, and prevention of animal cruelty.