Assam: Situation volatile at Karigaon; toll 2, Internet services suspended

Army called in

AASU condemns incident

OUR BUREAU

KOKRAJHAR/GUWAHATI: The situation in Kokrajhar is still volatile today, when two persons lost their lives in group clashes. On Tuesday morning, an irate mob gheraoed the Karigaon Police Outpost, demanding the handing over of the attackers to them. The mob burnt some houses in Karigaon, besides damaging the camp of Adivasi Cobra Militant of Assam (ACMA) and Birsa Commando Force (BCF) at Karigaon. On the other hand, Adivasi miscreants also burnt down some houses belonging to Bodos in the Aodang Bazar area this evening. The police team resorted to opening ten rounds of blank fire in the air to control the situation in Karigaon. To bring the situation under control, the army has been called in, besides the deployment of the RAF (Rapid Action Force).

An accident in the Karigaon area of Kokrajhar on Monday set the whole situation in motion. A group of Adivasi people attacked a vehicle belonging to a contractor in Kokrajhar, resulting in one person being killed on the spot. To bring the situation under control, the government suspended internet services in Kokrajhar and Chirang districts today.

Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, currently in Davos, said, “I’m in constant touch with the district administrations as well as senior officials of the state administration to restore normalcy in Kokrajhar.”

The Chief Minister appealed to civil society leaders across communities and political leaders to extend their full cooperation and help the administration restore peace and normalcy as soon as possible.

In today’s incident, a person named Sikhna Jwhwlao, alias Raja Bikshit of Kokrajhar, died on the spot in the attack, while two others escaped. One of the two Adivasi youths, Sunil Murmu of Gaurnagar, Karigaon, injured in the incident, succumbed to his injuries in the hospital today.

BTC CEM Hagrama Mohilary called the Karigaon incident unfortunate. He blamed it on misunderstanding and third-party involvement in the incident. He appealed to all communities to maintain peace and support authorities.

Talking to reporters, Boronda Basumatary of Gwjwnpuri, Kokrajhar, who is the contractor and father-in-law of Sikhna Jwhwlao, said he had a temporary labourers’ camp near Aodang Bazar, north of the incident spot. He sent his son-in-law, a JCB driver, and his son to the camp to bring spades in the evening. However, near Gaurnagar, South Karigaon, where Sidhu-Kanhu Murmu Bhavan is under construction, a group of Adivasi youths attacked their vehicle, Basumatary said. He said that the vehicle of his son-in-law was chased by a group of Adivasi youths with the false propaganda of being cow thieves, and subsequently, their vehicle was stopped by another group near Gaurnagar along the National Highway and pelted with stones. The duo, however, drove fast to escape, and in the process their vehicle knocked down two of the attackers – Sunil Murmu and Mahesh Murmu of Gaurnagar. The vehicle then turned into a turtle on the roadside, and the duo was attacked with lathis and sharp weapons, resulting in the immediate death of Sikhna Jwhwlao. JCB drivers Jubiras Basumatary and Prabhat Basumatary managed to escape with critical injuries. They were brought to Kokrajhar Medical College and Hospital, Besorgaon, Boronda Basumatary said.

Kokrajhar police sources reported the arrest of over 18 individuals suspected of involvement in the attack this morning.

BTC IG, SP, and local MLA Lawrence Islary visited the incident spot in Karigaon to assess the situation. The district administration has been trying to control the situation with additional forces of CRPF.

Meanwhile, AASU (All Assam Students’ Union) condemned the incident and appealed to all groups to maintain peace. It also demanded a high-level inquiry into the incident.

Also Read: Steps Being Taken to Restore Normalcy in Kokrajhar: CM Sarma