Two people died, and forty-eight police personnel, including senior cops, were injured, as two groups of tribal communities clashed in Kheroni in Assam's West Karbi Anglong district – over alleged encroachment on protected tribal lands – for a second consecutive day. Multiple shops and motorcycles were vandalised amid the unrest.
A 25-year-old man was burnt alive in Assam's Karbi Anglong district after a group of protesters set a shop on fire in the Kheroni area on Tuesday. While the police are yet to officially confirm the identity of the victim, residents said the victim was Suraj Dey, a physically disabled person.
According to locals, the shop that was set ablaze was located adjacent to Dey's residence, and he was inside the shop when the fire broke out. Meanwhile, police sources said that another resident, Chingthi Timung, who had sustained bullet injuries during police firing earlier on Tuesday afternoon, succumbed to his injuries in the evening while undergoing treatment.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma extended condolences to the bereaved families, adding, "Additional security forces will be deployed in Kherani tomorrow to maintain peace. We are in constant touch with all concerned to restore normalcy and resolve issues through dialogue."
The Army will conduct a flag march in violence-hit areas tomorrow.
The Director-General of Police, the state's top cop, was also targeted, NDTV was informed. “The government is ready to find a solution through dialogue. Violence benefits no one,” the DGP Harmeet Singh said, warning that the police have video evidence and identified individuals involved, and strict legal action will be taken against those responsible.
The DGP explained that on Monday night, the protest leader was taken to Guwahati for a medical examination after doctors assessed that his health was deteriorating due to the hunger strike. However, misinformation was spread claiming that the leader had been arrested, which further escalated tensions. He said that today the protesters attempted to take control of a bridge, and when police tried to stop them, they came under attack.
Harmeet Singh added that the government has been in continuous dialogue with the protesters, and the Chief Minister had already given them a date for talks, following which the hunger strike was withdrawn. He appealed to the protesters to stop the violence, stressing that such actions would not yield any results.
The government subsequently shut down mobile internet data in Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong.
Protesters threw stones at each other, and cops who tried to restore order with a lathi charge and firing of tear gas, as the already volatile situation worsened, prompting authorities to tighten security measures, including the deployment of over 100 cops to prevent any further escalation.
Protestors had earlier torched two motorcycles in the Kheroni area.
Earlier today, protesters seemed to have backed down – and called off a hunger strike – after talks with Pegu. The agitators, belonging to several political and social organisations, had been on a hunger strike for the past 12 days to demand the eviction of illegal settlers.
Pegu had delivered assurances of talks that will be attended by the Chief Minister.
On Monday, three civilians and a paramilitary personnel were injured, which led to the local administration imposing prohibitory orders citing "certain anti-social elements".
The protests yesterday also included incidents of arson; the house of the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council chief was burned down, prompting a district-wide curfew order.
The protestors also tried to attack a police station in Kheroni.
Pegu arrived in Kheroni on Monday night.
And on Sunday, police detained seven protesters.
Tension broke after thousands of indigenous people marched from Kheroni towards Dongkamukam, demanding the immediate release of the seven detained individuals.
Protesters also blocked roads in Kheroni as part of their agitation.
The root of the dispute, sources told NDTV, is the Karbi communities' demand – they reportedly want their ancestral land to be protected from other non-tribal communities in the area.
The protestors are demanding the eviction of encroachers, who mostly hail from Bihar, from the Professional Grazing Reserve (PGR) and Village Grazing Reserve (VGR) lands in the two districts.
