Assam: Tribal bodies accuse alleged migrant land mafia of occupying tribal lands in Kokrajhar

OUR CORRESPONDENT

KOKRAJHAR: A fresh controversy over alleged land encroachment has surfaced in Kokrajhar after various tribal organisations accused a non-Assamese Bangladeshi migrant identified as Sanjan Pal, whom they described as a land mafia, of illegally occupying government land allotted to indigenous religious institutions, including the Kokrajhar District Brahma Dharma Samity and Bathou Dharma Samity, at Patharghat on the bank of the Gaurang river.

The disputed government land is located alongside the Kokrajhar District Tribal Sangha office and had been allotted by the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) for the proposed Brahma Dharma and Bathou Dharma institutions.

Kokrajhar District Tribal Sangha President Anil Wary alleged that a tin-sheet boundary fence was erected at the site by a group led by Pal on Saturday night despite existing court orders and official instructions. He further alleged that banners of the Brahma Dharma and Bathou Dharma were removed and thrown away by the miscreants. The land was previously under the Water Resources Department and was later used as an Army camp before being earmarked by the BTC for the Tribal Sangha and the proposed indigenous religious institutions.

The tribal body claimed that this was not the first controversy involving Sanjan Pal. They pointed to an earlier police raid at his residence in Patharghat following an FIR lodged by the All Assam Tribal Sangha. During that operation, Kokrajhar police reportedly recovered iron grills and tin sheets allegedly stolen from the under-construction Tribal Rest House-cum-Office and the proposed Brahma Dharma and Bathou Dharma complex. He was also allegedly entangled in legal controversy for illegally occupying land at Amguri and Magurmari area in Kokrajhar.

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