Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, 6 Jun: Five persons have been arrested by the Arunachal Pradesh Police (APP) in connection with their alleged involvement in the shooting incident that had occurred at Torajan, along the Arunachal-Assam boundary, on Monday.
“The arrested persons have been identified as Bagam Tasso, Igip Tasso, Mikjom Tasso, Bompar Tasso, and Yongam Nguba. All are now in the Likabali jail,” informed APP PRO Rohit Rajbir Singh.
Singh further informed that the accused were interrogated for recovery of weapons. They have been arrested under Sections 147, 148, 149, 201, 302/36, and 307 of the IPC, r/w Sections 25/27 of the Arms Act.
Two persons were killed and three others sustained injuries when an altercation between the people of Assam and Arunachal broke out over a disputed land, which resulted in the shooting incident.
Assam Director General of Police, BP Singh informed through his social media handle that the Assam Police would take the five arrestees in custody.
“Reference the firing incident at the Assam-Arunachal border in Dhemaji & Gogamukh PS case No 63/23 u/s 147/148/302/326/307 IPC r/w 25 (1) (a)/27 (3) of Arms Act – Arunachal Police has arrested 5 accused persons. The Assam police would take them in custody following due procedure,” Singh tweeted.
It is alleged that the border-related tension was created by a group of people living far off from the interstate boundary. A local resident, on condition of anonymity, informed The Arunachal Times that, prior to the incident, the same group from Assam had started construction of a temple inside Arunachal’s territory, and that it had been reported to the Lower Siang DC, who had taken up the matter with his Dhemaji (Assam) counterpart.
The resident claimed that Assam Police, forest, and other officers have been trying for many days to stop this group of people from provoking, and to stop violation of the status quo.
“They dismantled the constructed temple made of bamboo and CGI sheet. Yet this group reconstructed the temple and put red flags all over our people’s WRC fields, plantations, etc. This group of people was hell-bent on disturbing the peaceful coexistence and did not obey their own Assam administration’s order to maintain the status quo,” the villager from the Arunachal side claimed.
“These people went to the extent of stopping ploughing of Galo WRC fields, which our people have been cultivating since time immemorial,” he said.
“The government should take appropriate action against the culprits who provoked and violated the status quo and peaceful coexistence. These culprits don’t have an inch of land in that area, and the Assamese people living along the boundary are also fed up with their activities,” he added.
The resident further said that the Galos residing in Torajan, Siloni, Raate, and Germe have a very peaceful coexistence with their immediate neighbours in Assam, such as the Mishings, Nepalis, Boros, etc. “They exude bonhomie and attend each other’s cultural and social events since the time of their great grandfathers,” he said.
Assam and Arunachal share an 804-km-long border, and both sides have been engaging in discussions to resolve the boundary disputes.
An MoU was signed by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and Arunachal CM Pema Khandu on 20 April in New Delhi, in the presence of union Home Minister Amit Shah, to resolve the border row.
In July last year, the two chief ministers signed the Namsai Declaration, setting in motion the efforts to solve the boundary disputes.
Arunachal Pradesh, which was made a union territory in 1972, claims that several forested tracts in the plains that had traditionally belonged to the hill tribal chiefs and communities were unilaterally transferred to Assam.
After Arunachal achieved statehood in 1987, a tripartite committee was appointed, which recommended that certain territories be transferred from Assam to Arunachal. Assam contested this, and the matter has been in the Supreme Court since.
