Gogoi wants judicial probe into Silapathar incident

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, March 8: Former State Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident at Silapathar where the AASU office had been ransacked on March 6.

Talking to newsmen outside the State Assembly today, Gogoi blamed it on the State Government. He questioned as to how the prime accused, Subudh Bishwas, could escape without the help of the government. “The accused was given an escape route by the government,” he said.

The incident took place during a procession taken out by the Nikhil Bharat Bengali Udbastu Samany Samiti on March 6 leading to the destruction of the office of the local AASU unit and also causing damage to public and private property, disrupting law-and-order situation in the area.    

The Assam Government has already ordered into the incident an inquiry by one-man committee headed by Additiol Chief Secretary VB Pyarelal.

Gogoi said: “It’s a pre-planned incident. How come a bureaucrat can inquire such an incident? He’ll write what the Chief Minister asks him to. There is a big conspiracy in the entire incident. Prime accused Subudh Bishwas has links with politicians, right from Union Home Minister Rajth Singh, Union minister Nitin Gadkari to BJP leaders of Assam. Their photos were made public. The BJP leaders are the ones who are vocal on the issue of citizenship amendment Bill. This is why I want a through judicial inquiry into the entire incident.”

Meanwhile, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) said that the failure of the government to arrest the culprits even after 48 hours of the incident is suspicious. “This incident reflects the crooked politics of the BJP, RSS and the government. We doubt that the Sonowal Government has no courage to arrest Subudh Bishwas as the recent photographs made it clear that he (Bishwas) has reach up to Delhi and gpur. This incident is a bad omen for the people of Assam. This is just the beginning. There’s a force within and without the government that’s out to smash the Assam Accord and put hurdles in the NRC update process. Now this has become crystal clear. We appeal to the people of Assam not to steps on the ditches dug by the BJP and the RSS.”