ITANAGAR, Feb 25: The Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) in a memorandum to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday urged him to constitute a commission, “to be headed preferably by a sitting judge of a high court or a retired chief justice of a high court,” to inquire into the death of three protestors in police firing during the recent anti-PRC agitation in Itanagar.
Informing the union minister about the law and order situation arising out of the anti-PRC agitation in the state capital, and saying that inept handling of the situation by the state government led to the death of three protestors and causing injuries to at least 15 others, the APCC demanded that Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Deputy CM Chowna Mein and Union MoS for Home Kiren Rijiju be sacked from their posts.
The APCC alleged that “gross mismanagement by the state government” of what had started as a peaceful protest
against the matter of issuing PRCs to non-APSTs in two districts “not only brought life to a standstill but also led to damage of properties of such magnitude which the state had never witnessed before.”
“There is every possibility of further escalation of the situation as the violence and unrest are rapidly spreading to other parts of the state,” the APCC claimed.
It also accused the state government of “remaining a mute spectator to the unfolding events over the past few days,” and added that lack of action would “jeopardize the socio-cultural fabric of the state” and have serious strategic ramifications.
“The situation warrants that the Centre takes a serious view on these developments,” it said.
Seeking the Centre’s intervention to stop further escalation of the situation, the APCC stated that such incidents, if allowed to continue unabated, would “threaten the very foundations of Arunachal Pradesh.”
The APCC submitted a similar memorandum to the governor.
President’s Rule demanded
Meanwhile, the Arunachal Pradesh Youth Congress (APYC) has called for imposition of President’s Rule in Arunachal, saying the BJP government in the state “has lost the confidence of the people because of inept handling of situation that has led to deaths and violence.”
It also demanded the resignation of the chief minister, the deputy CM, the home minister, and the union MoS for home.
Besides seeking transfers of some key officers, including the chief secretary, the APYC demanded forming a high level committee “to unearth the truth behind the whole issue.”
