Three Meghalaya workers detained by Assam Police; Meghalaya Police allegedly detain Assam Power Department employee in retaliation
A CORRESPONDENT
BOKO: Tension has resurfaced along the Assam-Meghalaya border following an alleged attempt by a section of people to establish a school of Meghalaya on Assam land, around 10 kilometres inside the Assam side of the inter-state boundary.
The incident reportedly took place at Nowapara village under the Boko-Chaygaon Assembly constituency in Kamrup district. The village, where around 90 Garo families reside, is situated approximately 10 kilometres inside Assam from the Assam-Meghalaya border. According to local residents, a section of Meghalaya supporters has allegedly been making efforts to bring the village under Meghalaya.
The latest development came after construction work for a school building allegedly associated with Meghalaya was started in the village. Following information from local residents, a team of Assam Police from the Lower Lampi Police Outpost, led by its officer-in-charge Jini Saikia, reached the spot and detained three Meghalaya workers who were allegedly engaged in the construction work. The three workers were subsequently brought to Boko Police Station for questioning on Wednesday.
The workers were identified as Dibanstar Rynjah, Joseph Nongmin and Synsharlang Nongspong, all residents of West Khasi Hills district in Meghalaya.
Following the incident, a district administration team led by Boko-Chaygaon Co-District Commissioner (CDC) Priyanshu Bharadwaj, along with Assistant CDC Roben Deuri, Boko Revenue Circle Officer Krishna Arjun Barman and Boko-Chaygaon CDSP Jankishor Gogoi, visited Nowapara to assess the situation.
Boko-Chaygaon CDSP Jankishor Gogoi said that the matter had been discussed over the phone with the Superintendent of Police of West Khasi Hills district in Meghalaya. He said the three workers would be allowed to leave after questioning.
Meanwhile, in an apparent retaliatory development, Meghalaya Police allegedly detained an employee of the Assam Electricity Department, identified as Nengram Sangma, while he was having tea at Kompaduli in Assam, and took him to Meghalaya.
The detention triggered tension across Kompaduli, Nowapara, Dronpara, Lower Lampi and Upper Lampi. When an Assam Electricity Department employee, Khem Magar, reportedly went to the Lampi Police Outpost in Meghalaya to enquire about Nengram Sangma, the Meghalaya Police allegedly misbehaved with him and stated that the Assam employee would be released only after the three Meghalaya workers detained by Assam Police were freed.
The three Meghalaya workers were later allowed to leave by Assam Police in the afternoon. Following their release, Meghalaya Police reportedly allowed Nengram Sangma to return home.
The developments have sparked resentment among residents of the border areas, with locals alleging that such incidents are continuing due to alleged negligence on the part of the Assam Government. Residents have urged the government to take immediate steps towards resolving the long-pending Assam-Meghalaya border dispute.
The latest incident is not the first alleged attempt by a section of Meghalaya supporters to assert influence over Nowapara. On September 3, a section of Meghalaya supporters allegedly obstructed census-related work at Nowapara Primary School and reportedly called Meghalaya Police to the spot, leading to a tense situation.
However, a team of Assam Police led by Lower Lampi Police Outpost officer-in-charge Jini Saikia reached the location and ensured that the census process was completed smoothly. The police team also escorted the census personnel safely back to Boko.
Commenting on the developments, Arjun Chetri, Executive Member of the Jongakhuli constituency of the Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council, alleged that attempts by Meghalaya to encroach upon Assam land have continued since the bifurcation of Assam and Meghalaya in 1972.
Chetri claimed that Meghalaya had already occupied around 15 kilometres of Assam territory in Lampi area. He alleged that certain vested interests in Meghalaya began efforts to include Garo- or Khasi-inhabited villages in Meghalaya whenever such settlements were found along the border.
He described the alleged obstruction of census operations and the reported attempt to establish a Meghalaya school on Assam land as the latest examples of such activities.
In a sarcastic remark, Chetri said that if Garo or Khasi communities were to reside in any locality of Dispur, the same logic could absurdly be used to claim that Dispur too belongs to Meghalaya.
Chetri further stated that since the division of the two states in 1972, Assam had never attempted to occupy Meghalaya's territory, while alleging that Meghalaya had continued its efforts to encroach upon Assam land.
The latest developments have once again brought the sensitive Assam-Meghalaya border issue into sharp focus, with residents calling for a permanent solution to prevent recurring tensions in the border areas.
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