Assam: Eviction turns violent; 1 killed and many injured in Goalpara

Emboldened by Rahul Gandhi’s reckless words, a violent mob attacked police personnel: CM

OUR BUREAU

GUWAHATI/GOALPARA: A person lost his life in retaliatory firing by police when a mob attacked a joint patrolling team of police and forest personnel at Ashudubi under the Paikan Reserve Forest in the Goalpara district today. The incident also left several police personnel and a few of the civilians injured.

The incident occurred when the Forest Department, with the help of the security personnel, was trying to dismantle a road and a few remaining structures; a mob of the evicted people made an attempt to obstruct them. The evicted people set afire a nearby ME school, causing major damage to it.

Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma said, "Action would be taken against those who launched the attack on the joint patrolling party. Action will be taken if anybody attacks security personnel. As of now, our primary aim is to free the encroached lands in the Paikan Reserve Forest area."

The administration carried out a massive eviction drive in the Paikan Reserve Forest to free 1,080 bighas of land from encroachers. A section of the evicted people is still staying in the area in temporary sheds. According to police sources, a section of people equipped with bamboo sticks attacked the security personnel and started pelting stones at them when the joint patrolling party was doing rounds in the area. The police had to fire in the air to bring the situation under control.

According to sources, taking the situation into consideration, the government will deploy the Rapid Action Force (RAF) in the area till July 31, 2025.

Meanwhile, the firing leading to the death of a person has stirred up the hornets' nest among the political parties. The Congress leaders have gone hammer and tongs against the government for the incident. Addressing the media in New Delhi today, the AAMSU (All Assam Minority Students' Union) leaders said that the security personnel started indiscriminate firing on the evicted people without resorting to measures like teargas shelling, firing of rubber bullets, etc.

The Chief Minister further said, "Rahul Gandhi came to Assam and openly encouraged encroachers to occupy forest lands. Emboldened by his reckless words, today a violent mob attacked our police personnel. In the line of duty, 21 police officers and forest guards suffered grievous injuries. Left with no choice, the police had to open fire to restore the law-and-order situation. This is the disastrous legacy of Rahul Gandhi's one-day visit to Assam. His irresponsible rhetoric has directly endangered lives and disturbed peace in our state."

Citing officials, the Chief Minister said that tension flared up when the residents of Bidyapara and Betbari allegedly confronted the police with stones and sticks. The violence began when a large crowd attempted to halt the eviction process by attacking police personnel and damaging an excavator, he said, adding that a person identified as Sakoat Ali died in the clash while another person named Kutubuddin Sheikh sustained serious injuries. The Chief Minister said that the eviction drive would continue till all encroached lands were freed from encroachers.

Also Read: Assam: AAMSU Seeks PM's Intervention Over Eviction Drives

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