"Clamp down on anyone to Prevent post-draft NRC trouble: Assam Director General of Police (DGP) Kuladhar Saikia

* Assam Police justifies its act against TMC MPs

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Assam Director General of Police (DGP) Kuladhar Saikia on Thursday asserted that the police will come down heavily on anyone trying to create an untoward incident and social tension on the pretext of the complete draft NRC.

The DGP’s assertion came a few hours after a delegation of Assam Director General of Police MPs were detained and allegedly manhandled at Silchar Airport by Assam Police on Thursday. The delegation was on a two-day visit to Assam where they were scheduled to go to some places in Barak and Brahmaputra Valleys to meet people whose names did not figure in the complete draft NRC published on Monday.

“We had made a humble request to the delegation not to enter Silchar right now as it is important for us to maintain peace across the State. Moreover, Section 144 has already been imposed in Cachar district after the publication of the draft NRC and the TMC delegation was consisting of eight people. We feared their (TMC delegation) arrival might cause tension among the people. Since the post-NRC draft publication situation is absolutely peaceful in the State, the police did not want to take any risk and thus requested the TMC MPs not to visit Cachar district at this juncture,” Saikia told reporters here on Thursday evening.

“But the TMC delegation refused to keep our request and engaged in a scuffle. Two of our constables and one worker from the district administration were injured,” Saikia said adding the police have kept the members of TMC delegation inside the airport with restrictions on their movement.

The DGP said three FIRs have so far been filed against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for her alleged inflammatory and provocative statements on the NRC. He said FIRs have been filed at Lakhimpur, Pan Bazar and Basistha police stations by different individuals with charges of criminal conspiracy, making hate speech and criminal intimidation against Banerjee under sections 120 (B)/153 (A)/294/506 of IPC.

Meanwhile, the Section 144 has also been clamped in Guwahati to prevent any untoward incident on the pretext of draft NRC publication. Saikia said the Assam Police has taken up the issue of preventing some people from Assam to enter some NE States on the ground of names included or excluded in draft NRC, with its counterparts in respective States.