Shrinkhal Chaliha in Sivasagar has threatened to intensify protests if the police do not arrest people accused in the alleged killing of Manas Chetia, an indigenous youth.
He alleged that Chetia was beaten to death with rods by people described as Bangladeshis, and said an FIR had been filed in the matter. The allegation has not been independently verified.
Claiming that around 15,000 people joined a protest the previous day, Shrinkhal said a protest involving 30,000 people would be organised if arrests were not made. He said authorities had been given 48 hours to act, while also referring to a 40-hour deadline.
Shrinkhal Chaliha alleged that police personnel had been deployed outside the homes of those named in the FIR, while there was no police presence near Chetia’s home or on the approach road to it. He said discussions had been held with minister Bimal Bora and claimed that instructions for an early investigation and arrests would be issued.
In remarks that included threats of violence, Shrinkhal Chaliha said action would be taken against people described as Bangladeshis if the administration failed to act. He also demanded verification of Aadhaar cards and voter-list details of battery rickshaw drivers in Sivasagar, claiming that suspicious people were operating such vehicles.
Shrinkhal Chaliha said outsiders should not be allowed to affect the livelihoods of local youth and described Sivasagar as a key centre of Assamese identity. No response from the police or the Assam government was included in the source material.
