Assam violence: PM called up Gogoi,urged stern action

The Prime Minister has decided to visit the affected areas in Kokrajhar on Saturday,Home Minister P Chidambaram said today. Sources said the proactive intervention from the Centre — despite the fact that Assam is a Congress-ruled state and that law and order is a state subject — followed reports from intelligence agencies that the state government had been slightly slow in dealing with the situation.

Meanwhile,the violence,in which Muslims were the main targets,has got Muslim politicians united. A group of Muslim MPs,led by Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka K Rahman Khan,sent a memorandum to the Prime Minister demanding the “immediate dissolution of the Bodo-Territorial Council”,while blaming the state government for failing to take adequate measures to prevent the situation.

Six Muslim MPs from across the political spectrum also met Chidambaram,requesting that the Centre should step in and take more proactive action in ensuring relief and rehabilitation for the over 200,000 displaced people living in relief camps.

“It is extremely unfortunate and sad that Muslims have been targeted in this holy month of Ramzan. It seems to be a calculated design to wipe out the Muslim population from the area. We are extremely concerned and want the Centre to play a more active role in restoring normalcy in the state,” Rahman Khan said.

Chidambaram told the media that no deaths had occurred in the last 24 hours and the situation was being slowly being brought under control. Two senior Home Ministry officials are already in the area and met leaders of all the local communities today in a bid to broker peace.

“I met the officials from Delhi and demanded that the displaced people be rehabilitated within a week. I have been assured by the Home Ministry officials that this will be done. But I do not trust the Assam government. This entire violence took place with the support of the state government,” said Maulana Badruddin Ajmal,MP from Dhubri,another of the violence-stricken districts. Ajmal’s party,All India United Democratic Front,is an ally of the UPA government at the Centre.

However,the MP from Kokrajhar,Sansuma Khunggur Bwiswmuthiary,who belongs to the Bodoland People’s Front — another UPA ally — blamed the violence on “outside forces”. “There is a deep-rooted conspiracy behind these attacks,and some anti-India forces are at work,” he said,but did not specify which “anti-India forces” he was referring to.

The Home Ministry has repeatedly denied the involvement of any Bangladeshi-based elements or groups in the clashes. Today,it warned both the sides to desist from any violent act and said that leaders on either side will be held personally responsible if clashes break out again.

“The Centre and the state governments are both clear that in case of any violence on any side that is instigated and that results in loss of life,the leaders will be personally held responsible and made accused,” Home Secretary R K Singh said.