Army marches in West Karbi Anglong, net off for 2nd day

Guwahati: A column of the Army, deployed in West Karbi Anglong, conducted a flag march at Kheroni, the epicentre of the unrest that broke out on Monday. Police said the situation remained tense but under control, with no fresh incident of violence reported on Wednesday.Prohibitory orders on public gatherings, imposed on Tuesday following the violence, continue to remain in force. Internet services of all mobile providers also remained suspended for the second consecutive day. Violence erupted on Monday when agitators — on a hunger strike since Dec 6 demanding eviction of non-tribals from village grazing reserve (VGR) and professional grazing reserve (PGR) land under the Sixth Schedule council — set ablaze the residence of the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) chief executive member. The situation escalated after police shifted several protesters to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital for treatment as their health deteriorated.CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “The situation in the hilly district is under control now. No fresh incident has been reported so far. Since assembly elections are approaching, we had already anticipated the possibility of such untoward incidents in certain pockets. We will have to remain alert till Jan-end.”He stressed that violence cannot yield results, adding that the govt cannot carry out eviction drives in VGR and PGR lands due to a Gauhati high court stay order. “Till now, we have conducted eviction drives only on forest land as per court orders. The Karbi people demand eviction of settlers in VGR and PGR land despite the stay. I don’t know why they have not understood,” he said.A tripartite meeting between the state govt, KAAC, and representatives of the agitators is scheduled for Friday.The CM said one Karbi youth was killed in police firing, while another specially-abled youth died after being trapped inside a shop set ablaze by agitators on Tuesday.Meanwhile, DGP Harmeet Singh, who has been stationed in the district since the violence began, told the media that more than 60 police personnel sustained injuries, with several seriously wounded and shifted to Hojai for treatment. Protesters reportedly used crude bombs and stones to attack security forces.Both DGP Singh and IGP (law & order) Akhilesh Kumar Singh were injured in the clashes — the DGP hit on his shoulder during stone-pelting, and the IGP sustaining a leg injury.DGP Singh said, “Legal action as required will be taken. We have got a lot of video footage, and people are being identified. Some have already been identified. When such incidents occur, there are legal repercussions. The law has to take its own course.”The protest, centred on alleged encroachment by Hindi-speaking settlers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in VGR and PGR land of the Sixth Schedule district, began last year and has gradually intensified.