Assam cops seek M’laya help to ease border tension

GUWAHATI: Assam police has sought the help of their counterpart in Meghalaya to overcome the “language barrier” to ease tension on the Kamrup-West Khasi Hills border.
“We have a language problem when it comes to communicating with the Khasi residents. So we are coordinating with police in Nongstoin to help us in this regard,” Jogen Barman, officer-in-charge of Boko police station, told The Shillong Times on Saturday.
Four Assam police personnel and several residents, including women, were injured in a clash over electrification in the border village on February 14.
“No untoward incident has since taken place in the area, which is about 35km from Boko town. However, bad road condition rendered worse by inclement weather of late has prevented frequent visits on our part to the clash site over the past week,” Barman, who had rushed to the site on the day of the clash, said.
Villagers of Umwali allege that the Assam police had resorted to lathi-charge on February 14. When asked, the police said action had to be taken after stones were pelted by a group following interruption of electrification work in the village.
Langpih is a disputed area along the inter-state boundary.
In 2010, four Khasi villagers had died in a clash with police.
Barman said Langpih and Moinadhora, where miscreants had allegedly gutted a hut owned by a Nepali-speaking family last month, are vulnerable areas.
“We are trying to avoid any flare-up in these vulnerable areas where police from Meghalaya are helping us overcome the language barrier,” Barman said.
Both Assam and Meghalaya have had high-level meetings over the decade only to arrive at a common resolution of maintaining status quo on the inter-state boundary.
Recently, Home Minister James Sangma had assured a visiting delegation of Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) that work under the electrical development project would go ahead. The project aims at electrifying all the villages of the border area, including Langpih.