Clashes erupt in Kokrajhar: Army deployed in Assam's Kokrajhar after violent clashes; Mobile internet suspended to curb spread of rumors

Guwahati: Army was deployed in Assam’s Kokrajhar district and mobile Internet suspended after violent clashes between Bodos and Adivasis over lynching of a man left several injured early on Tuesday morning.Police arrested 19 persons for rioting after both communities led separate attacks at the nearby Karigaon police outpost, pelted stones at cops and CRPF personnel and burned tyres and blocked the National Highway 27 for hours.Kokrajhar SSP Akshat Garg said the district administration called in the Army, and they have been deployed at vulnerable points along with paramilitary troops. Authorities also suspended mobile internet services indefinitely to curb the spread of rumours and prohibited gatherings, rallies, picketing, sloganeering and carrying sharp weapons among others.Trouble broke out when a group of people belonging to the Adivasi community tried to stop a car at Karigaon on the Gouri Nagar–Mashing Road stretch but the driver hit two Adivasi individuals and skidded off the road.The Bodo individuals onboard the vehicle were Sikhna Jwhwlao Bismit alias Raja, Prabhat Brahma and Jubiraj Brahma. They were returning after a site inspection in the Aoudang area.Angry Adivasis pulled out the three from the car and started beating them up. Raja, the son-in-law of local contractor Moranda Basumatary, died while Bodos, Prabhat and Jubiraj and the Advisasi duo of Sunil Murmu and Mahesh Murmu, who sustained injuries when the car hit them, are currently undergoing medical treatment at Kokrajhar Medical College and Hospital.According to doctors, the condition of Prabhat Brahma was critical.As news of the clash spread, hundreds of people from both communities went on the rampage and attacked cops and blocked highways in protest.Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who is currently in Davos attending the World Economic Forum meeting, in a statement said that he is in constant touch with the district administration as well as senior officials of the state administration to restore normalcy in Kokrajhar.“To ensure peace and the safety of all citizens, the Army has been called in, and Rapid Action Force (RAF) units of the CRPF have been deployed as a precautionary measure. In the interest of maintaining law and order, mobile internet services will remain temporarily suspended in Kokrajhar and Chirang,” the CM said.He appealed to civil society leaders and political leadership across communities to extend their full cooperation and help restore peace and normalcy at the earliest.Assam police said the situation in Karigaon was under control. “We urge all sections of society to remain calm and not fall for rumours or misinformation that is being spread by anti-national elements. These anti-national elements that are attempting to disturb harmony and create panic are identified and will be dealt with strictly,” a statement read.IGP (law & order) Akhilesh Kumar Singh, who rushed to Kokrajhar, said extra forces from RAF and CRPF have been deployed.Later, Kokrajhar deputy commissioner and district magistrate Pankaj Chakravarty imposed prohibitory orders, including banning gatherings.