Border Violence,Miscreants And Hapless Villagers

There will probably be unanimity over the fact that August 13 was one of the most horrendous and unforgettable days for the people of Assam. It will appear so when viewed in the backdrop of the decades-old Assam- Nagaland border dispute. Why should it be considered as a woeful day? Because it is on this very day that over 6000 people from five different villages of the Wriamghat area in Dhansiri sub-division of the Golaghat district fled their homes after armed Naga miscreants raided their villages and set their houses on fire.

A day before, i.e. on August 12, the miscreants from the Nagaland side of the border fired at a meeting of the villagers at Chetiagaon demanding the release of two students who were suspected to have been kidnapped by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak Muivah (NSCN-IM) on July 26. This resulted in the death of one person and injuries to two others. Although there are unconfirmed reports suggesting the death of three Adivasi villagers in the trouble-torn areas, the official toll is one.

Officially, Assam andNagaland share a 434 km boundary after the latter was carved out as an independent state in 1963.

Over 60,000 hectares of Assam forest land has been reportedly under the occupation of Nagaland where schools, health centres, churches and other facilities have sprung up with the direct help of the Naga government.

Assam CM Tarun Gogoi stated, “We have maps and document to prove our claim that lands under the disputed area belong to Assam while Nagaland claims those on the basis of history. We refer to constitutional boundary.”

What is indeed most frustrating pertaining to the whole story of the Assam-Nagaland border row is that the Naga miscreants should choose this time to launch the unprovoked armed attack on the hapless villagers of Assam when the new NDA government headed by Narendra Modi has initiated discussions to resolve the long pending boundary disputes between the concerned states in Northeast India. How could the violence flare up all of a sudden? Did the Nagaland government have no intelligence input as to the miscreants having such a diabolical plan of causing border violence up their sleeves? Or naout  the NSCN(IM)’s induced flare-up on the disputed Assam-Nagaland border in Assam’s Golaghat district as alleged by the Assam government? Or can it be taken for granted that Nagaland wittingly played Dhritarashtra? Or were the border attacks pre-meditated?

Dwaipayan

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