Assam Govt Ready To Hold Talks To Pacify Situation In Karbi Anglong, Situation Remains Tense But Under Control
The state administration has decided to continue the suspension of the internet services in violence-hit districts
Guwahati: Assam Director General of Police Harmeet Singh on Wednesday said that the situation in trouble-torn Karbi Anglong has been brought under control and there has been no fresh incident of violence since morning.
Asserting that violence cannot be a means to achieve demands, Mr Singh said that the government was ready to find a solution through talks with protestors. “The state government has already announced December 26 for holding negotiations to find an amicable solution through tripartite talks,” said the DGP, who is camping in the area to supervise the law and order situation.
He informed that 48 police personnel, including two IPS officers, have been injured so far in the violence. The DGP himself and IG Akhilesh Kumar Singh suffered minor injuries while controlling a mob that resorted to stone-pelting on the police.
Pointing out that the situation escalated after a large crowd gathered in the districts on Monday, the DGP said that he met the protesters and spoke to them personally in an attempt to defuse tensions.
He also clarified that some of the protestors sitting on fast were taken to Guwahati for medical attention as their health deteriorated. He said that as soon as they recover, they would be allowed to join the agitation as they have not been arrested.
Meanwhile, the state administration has decided to continue the suspension of the internet services in violence-hit districts.
Informing that as of now, the situation is under control as there was no violence throughout the night and this morning, security sources, however, said that the situation was still tense as the two warring communities were seen mobilising in small numbers at different places.
The local Karbi and Bihari communities have been at loggerheads over allegations of encroachment on the Village Grazing Reserve and Professional Grazing Reserve in tribal blocks and belts by the Hindi-speaking people who have been settled in the area for the past several decades.
Five more CRPF companies have been deployed in the area, and security forces are conducting joint flag marches in the area to defuse the simmering tension between the two communities.
Two persons were killed, and at least 45 others, including 38 police personnel, were injured on Tuesday in violence that broke out in the Kheroni area in West Karbi Anglong district.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told reporters that his government was ready to fulfil the demand of removing the encroachers from tribal areas, but due to restrictions imposed by the Gauhati High Court, his government was helpless. “We are ready to find a solution through talks,” said the chief minister, indicating that his government may consider the option of taking legal recourse against the court order that has stopped the eviction drive in the area.
