Dhemaji, March 7: Army and paramilitary forces carried out a flag march through Silapathar town, where shops and business establishments remained closed and various organisations held a meeting to protest yesterday's attack on the office of All Assam Students' Union (AASU) and assault on its members by supporters of the Nikhil Bharat Bangali Udbastu Samanway Samitee (Nibbuss).
Eight AASU members were injured and its Silapathar office in Dhemaji district was ransacked by Nibbuss supporters, who took out a procession after a daylong meeting demanding unconditional removal of the names of Hindu Bengalis from the list of D (doubtful) voters.
Various organisations today "vigorously" condemned the incident, demanded arrest of those involved and a ban on Nibbuss, besides announcing an agitation. Some described it as an attack on the Assamese people. The AASU said the BJP government's move to give citizenship to Hindu Bangladeshis had instigated the incident.
Parliamentary affairs minister Chandra Mohan Patowary told the Assembly today that police have registered a case at Silapathar police station under Sections 147, 148, 149, 448, 325, 307, 427 and 153 of IPC on the basis of an FIR lodged by Krishna Ranjan Chutia and Bhagawan Doley, general secretary and president of AASU's Dhemaji district unit.
Patowary said 11 persons, all from Silapathar, were arrested in this connection. They are Ramendra Pal, Khokan Dey, Basudev Nath, Prasanna Das, Madan Debnath, Sankar Baidya, Dhananjay Das, Suresh Saha, Raju Das Roy, Ujjwal Aich and Dilip Debnath.
Patowary said nearly 5,000 people attended the rally while around 2,500 took part in the procession. Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed additional chief secretary V.B. Pyarelal to inquire into the incident.
Terming the incident "unfortunate", Sonowal said some people were trying to create a rift among different communities but they would not be allowed to succeed. Cabinet minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state government would adopt a "zero tolerance" policy on the incident.
Security personnel caned activists of different organisations who had gathered in the town to protest the incident. The protesters set fire to the platform erected yesterday by Nibbuss at Silajanajati School. The leaders of 18 organisations and AASU had a meeting at Silapathar Town LP School where they demanded immediate arrest of 24 people against whom a complaint was lodged last night. The Dhemaji district administration, meanwhile, organised a meeting on Silapathar police station campus, which was attended by the union leaders, Lakhimpur MP Pradan Baruah, the deputy commissioner and superintendent of police.
The organisations demanded that the administration bear the medical expenses of the injured AASU activists. AASU said it would organise satyagraha at all district headquarters in the state. AGP (Anchalikatabadi Manch) said the attack was "pre-planned."
Brihatar Assam Bengali Unnayan Samiti, an NGO working for the development of Bengalis in the state, condemned the incident.
Asom Sangrami Mancha, a forum of 18 public organisations, asked Ulfa (Independent) to take action against the culprits of the incident.
Seven organisations called an indefinite Golaghat bandh from tomorrow but later withdrew it. Three restaurants owned by Bengalis in Golaghat town were vandalised last night.
Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) today said the incident was an outcome of the BJP-led state government's decision to grant citizenship to Hindu migrants from Bangladesh.
Police have picked up two more persons in connection with the yesterday incident. In Guwahati All Assam Students' Union organised a torchlight procession this evening.
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