Guwahati, Sept. 18: Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu has reiterated the concerns of the people of the state to the Centre on the granting of citizenship to Chakma and Hajong refugees.

In a letter to Union home minister Rajnath Singh today, Khandu said the matter was of deep emotional concern and that they were not ready to accept any infringement of the constitutional protection bestowed on the tribals of the state.

Khandu's letter articulating the concerns of the people comes on the eve of tomorrow's 12-hour bandh called by the All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union.

The strike has been called in protest against the Centre's decision on Wednesday to grant citizenship to the two communities without diluting the rights of the indigenous communities, a move which has sparked off protests in the state.

The Chakmas and Hajongs were originally from Bangladesh's Chittagong Hills Tracts but settled by the Centre in the state since 1964.

Khandu said the state, with its unique history, is governed by the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873.

Section 2 of the act prohibits all citizens of India or any class of such citizens from going beyond such line without a pass issued under the hand and seal of an officer authorised with such function.

'Section 7 of the regulation says it shall not be lawful for any person, not being a native of the district, comprised in the preamble of this regulation, to acquire any interest in land or the product of land beyond the said inner line...,' the release said.

It added that Arunachal Pradesh is a predominantly tribal state and the Constitution gives special protection rights to the people.

These provisions aim to protect the tribes of the state from the onslaught of 'alien culture and overwhelming influx of non-Arunachalees in the state.

'Therefore, as mentioned by me in our meeting recently, I reiterate that the people of my state are not ready to accept any infringement on the constitutional protection bestowed on the tribals of Arunachal Pradesh and want to ensure that the ethnic composition and the special rights enjoyed by the tribes of Arunachal Pradesh are safeguarded at all cost,' Khandu said in the letter.

He solicited the Union home minister's support in protecting the tribal rights and securing the sanctity of the inner line permit (ILP) in the state.

Union minister Kiren Rijiju said the Centre would urge the Supreme Court to modify its order of granting citizenship to the Chakma-Hajong refugees so that rights of indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh are not diluted, adds PTI.

'There is no decision of the government of India to grant citizenship. It is the order of the Supreme Court. We are trying to tell the honourable Supreme Court that giving Chakmas and Hajongs the same rights as Arunachalis is not acceptable to us. People of Arunachal must appreciate that for the first time the Centre has not agreed....So we are appealing to the apex court to modify this order...to ensure that rights of the indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh are protected,' Rijiju told reporters at Naharlagun helipad yesterday.

Rijiju's remarks come days after he said a 'middle ground' would be chosen so that the 2015 Supreme Court order to grant citizenship to Chakma-Hajong refugees could be honoured.

The Chakma-Hajong refugee issue has evoked strong resentment in the state with many organisations and political parties saying that granting of citizenship to the refugees would distort the social fabric of the state.