JORHAT: Attacks on Assamese people by suspected Naga militants at Merapani along the Assam-Nagaland border in Golaghat district continue with a group of Nagas burning down a house at Upper Merapani on Wednesday night. The Naga militants also forced about 100 Assamese families to vacate their residential land on the foothills along the border and occupied the area.
"A group of armed Naga militants, some of whom we suspect were NSCN(IM) cadres, burnt down my home on Wednesday night and chased my family out of the village. They also tried to kill us by shooting at us, but we somehow managed to escape. There are five women and four children in my family, besides me. Now, we are taking shelter at Merapani town and have no place to stay as all our properties were razed to the ground along with the house," said a resident of Upper Merapani village.
He added the DC and the SP visited the family on receiving the information, but they have failed to provide any solution or security to them. "About 50 families have moved out of their homes following the Nagas' threats. The homeless people are now taking shelter at several places in Jorhat town and are waiting for a fruitful solution to the dispute, but nothing has been done as yet. Although Nagaland Police and central paramilitary forces have beefed up their patrolling along the border, they have failed to control the miscreants so far," he said.
Golaghat DC N M Hussain said, "Tension has been prevailing in Upper Merapani as some miscreants burnt down a house on Wednesday night. In fact, the Upper Merapani village is a Naga-dominated area where about 100 Assamese families were residing. But Naga miscreants have repeatedly targeted the Assamese families, causing a frequent law-and-order problem in the area."
"We spoke to Nagaland officials and asked them to hold a meeting of civil society groups from both the states to bring back normalcy. Moreover, security forces have been directed to take up a strict vigil along the border to prevent any kind of untoward incidents. Three more platoons of Assam Police have been deployed to control the situation."
Meanwhile, Aasu strongly criticized the government's failure to provide security to the people in border areas and demanded a solution to the problem at the earliest. They also threatened to start an agitation unless their demands are fulfilled.