INTERNET CUT, TENSIONS AFTER DEATHS IN ASSAM, MEGHALAYA
Local residents of Mukroh village in Meghalaya’s West Jaiñtia Hills district woke up to an uneasy calm and a wave of sorrow gripped the area on Wednesday, a day after six people, including an Assam forest guard, were killed in firing at the Assam-meghalaya border.
Mobile internet services continued to remain disrupted in seven districts, several shops remained closed and streets remained largely empty.
SHILLONG: Local residents of Mukroh village in Meghalaya’s West Jaintia Hills district woke up to an uneasy calm and a wave of sorrow gripped the area on Wednesday, a day after five people were killed in firing at the border with Assam.
Mobile internet services continued to remain disrupted in seven districts, several shops remained closed and streets remained largely empty as security personnel stood in large numbers to prevent any untoward incident.
Six people, including an Assam forest guard, were killed in firing at the Assam-meghalaya border in the early hours of Tuesday. While the Meghalaya government said the violence occurred at Mukhroh in the state’s West Jaintia Hills and was the outcome of “unprovoked” firing, its Assam counterpart said the incident took
place in the state’s West Karbi Anglong district when forest personnel opened fire to save their lives from “unknown miscreants” smuggling timber.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday announced his cabinet has decided to hand over the probe into violence at the border of the two states to CBI. Meghalaya
CM Conrad Sangma said he will seek a probe “either by NIA or CBI”. “There were gunshots suddenly and I saw five people fall right in front of me before getting hit by the bullet myself,” Elias Samaiang (36), who was among two people injured in the firing, said. “After that, I do not remember anything,” he added.
While Samaiang was hit by the bullet in his chin, Cheini Nartiang (48) was shot in his nose.
According to news agency PTI, a group of villagers from Meghalaya allegedly vandalised and set ablaze a forest office in Assam’s West Karbi Anglong district on Tuesday as a mark of protest against the firing.
Outraged over the firing, the villagers in Mukroh alleged such transgressions by Assam Police have also happened in the past. “Ten years ago, six villagers in Mukroh were shot by armed personnel from Assam but the matter was not reported,” sordar (village chief) Hamboi Sumer said.
“The perpetrators should be named, arrested and handed over to Meghalaya authorities for a fair trial forthwith,” Khasi Students Union general secretary Donald V Thabah said.
Meanwhile, concerns arose in Assam over reports of several vehicles and people getting stranded in Meghalaya.