New Delhi: India’s Home Ministry on Wednesday submitted a report to the Prime Minister’s Office on the ongoing violence along the Assam-Nagaland border, where nine persons were killed and 10,000 people rendered homeless, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought details on it.
Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Nripendra Mishra asked the Home Ministry to send details of the situation along the border in Golaghat district in Assam where violence erupted about a week ago after armed groups from Nagaland allegedly attacked villagers in Assam.
“We have already submitted the report to the PMO,” Home Ministry sources said. The report was sent within hours of the PMO’s communication seeking details of the situation.
The Home Ministry has already sent around 1,000 paramilitary personnel to be deployed along the Assam-Nagaland border to defuse the situation.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and his Nagaland counterpart T.R. Zelian will meet in Guwahati on Thursday to find a way out to resolve the dispute.
Gogoi was on Sunday hackled by some villagers when he had visited the violence-hit Uriamghat in Golaghat district. The Chief Minister had also alleged inaction by CRPF deployed at the troubled site to prevent the attacks from across the state border.
However, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju today refuted the allegation of Gogoi terming it as “baseless”.
At least 18 protesters were also injured after police fired rubber pellets and resorted to lathicharge at Rangajan in Golaghat district on Tuesday.
Police said a group of protesters turned violent and attacked the police and CRPF personnel deployed in the area following a road blockade agitation launched by them.
The protesters were agitating against alleged failure of the security forces to protect the people at Uriamghat against the attack by armed groups from Nagaland killing nine persons and rendering over 10,000 homeless last week.
Meanwhile, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi accused Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh of failing to provide security along the far-East Indian state’s border with Nagaland and accused the Centre of not taking the recent violence there seriously.
Addressing a press conference here, Gogoi said “Yes, I am responsible as the state CM for what is happening along the border. But why are you not blaming Rajnath Singh? Why are same charges not being made against the union home minister for failing to give protection?”
The Assam-Nagaland border, he said, is a disputed subject and the area is controlled by the Centre with the help of CRPF, a ‘neutral’ force which failed to provide security to the people and properties there.
But the Centre, he said, is not taking the issue seriously at all. “It is a very serious issue but the way they are handling it, is not serious.”
He condemned the police action against protesters at Rangajan area of Golaghat district on Tuesday and said the government will order an inquiry by Additional Chief Secretary Subhash Chandra Das into the incident that left 22 civilians and seven police personnel injured.
District police had earlier put the figure of injured at 18, including women, in the firing of rubber pellets and lathi charge when protesters turned violent and attacked police and CRPF following a road blockade agitation on Tuesday.
Gogoi said “A few policemen might be at fault but for that the entire force cannot be blamed. The Assam police is still one of the best police force in the country.”
The police, he said, lathi charged and used rubber bullets when protesters became violent following the rescue and release of nine Nagaland police personnel who were illegally confined by villagers since August 15.
“Despite all these, people in the border still have confidence in Assam Police and not in the central force. They want replacement of the CRPF by Assam Police.
“If the border is given to me, I will show how to protect people,” Gogoi claimed.
The chief minister said one of the protesters named Ajit Tanti had died at Rangajan when he was run over by a vehicle. “Still we will give Rs500,000 to his family as an ex-gratia amount.”
