Assam, Mizoram up security at border
MHA calls for meeting between senior officials of both states as border areas remain tense
SILCHAR/NEW DELHI: The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) deployed more personnel at the border between Assam and Mizoram on Tuesday, a day after violent clashes over a border dispute between the north-eastern states left six people dead and over 60 injured, while the Union home ministry has called a meeting between senior officials from both states on Wednesday to ease mounting tensions.
With Mizoram increasing the number of security personnel guarding the contentious 165-km border, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state will deploy 4,000 commandoes along the border and said would move Supreme Court seeking protection against construction of roads by the Mizoram government on the Assam side.
In Parliament, the home ministry said it only acts as a facilitator for amicable settlement in case of border disputes between states and that such disputes can only be resolved with the cooperation of the
concerned state governments. It said that currently, there are at least seven such interstate disputes in the country, with Assam being involved in four.
Responding to a query on the role of Centre in inter-state boundary disputes, Union minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai said in a written statement in the Lok Sabha: “The approach of the central government has consistently been that inter-state disputes can be resolved only with the cooperation of the state governments concerned and that the central government acts only as a facilitator for amicable settlement of the dispute in the spirit of mutual understanding”.
He said that currently there are at least seven such interstate disputes in the country with Assam being involved in four.
The border dispute between Assam and Mizoram is primarily difference of perception. While the Mizoram government goes by 1875 border alignment to separate plains of Cachar from Lushai Hills (present day Mizoram), the Assam follows 1933 demarcation, done to identify district of present day Manipur carved from some parts of Lushai Hills.
CRPF director general, Kuldiep Singh said five companies (close to 500 personnel) have been deployed and another two are on standby on the AssamMizoram border shared by Cachar’s district Lailapur and Kolasib district’s Vairengte.
“We can’t do what Mizoram has done yesterday. Assam will never use bullets against any Indian citizen, this is not in our DNA. We don’t have political fight with Mizoram but there is a reason behind the Monday’s incident. We have discussed the matter and asked Mizoram to investigate properly,” Sarma said on Tuesday, while addressing the media in Silchar.
Mizoram refuted his claim and said the Assam Police entered Mizoram and started firing first.
“Our police personnel only fired in retaliation to firing by the Assam Police. It was the Assam Police that entered Mizoram and started assaulting our people. Any violence is unfortunate and we condole deaths,” said Mizoram home minister Lalchamliana.
Union home secretary Ajay Bhalla will be meeting chief secretaries and director generals of police (DGPs) of Assam and Mizoram on Wednesday at his office over the border dispute, said ministry officials on condition of anonymity. Other senior officers of the MHA as well as intelligence agencies and paramilitary forces are expected to attend the meeting.
The MHA has asked the states to resolve the border dispute amicably without any violence and the home secretary’s meeting is being seen as first steps towards facilitating such talks.