From CK Nayak
NEW DELHI, Nov 23: The chief ministers of Meghalaya and Assam are meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday to apprise the Centre of the November 22 violence on the border between the two states, in which five villagers from Meghalaya and a forest guard from Assam were killed and several others injured.
While Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma is already in New Delhi for an event to mark the 400th birth anniversary of legendary Ahom general Lachit Borpukhan on Thursday, his Meghalaya counterpart Conrad K Sangma is arriving on Thursday afternoon for the meeting.
Officials in the Union Home Ministry said the Centre is seized of the matter and is in touch with both the state governments on the serious issue.
The two CMs agreed that the police firing was unprovoked and could have been avoided. They also agreed that the violence was related to timber issues and had nothing to do with border disputes.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed anguish over the border violence.
“I am gravely anguished by the tragic instance of firing at Mukroh, Meghalaya, that claimed the lives of 6 people. I express my heartfelt condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in this conflict. I earnestly pray that peace and calm prevail for the greater good,” she tweeted.
Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday said the incident showed the “ineptitude” of the Meghalaya government.
Expressing shock over the incident, he tweeted: “I am shocked and deeply saddened by the extremely unfortunate firing incident at Mukroh, Meghalaya which took away lives of five innocent civilians and a forest guard from Assam.”
Taking a dig at the Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government, Banerjee said, “Today’s incident exposes the ineptitude of the MDA Govt, failing its own people.”
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday alleged that the BJP’s North-East Democratic Alliance has failed the region and called on Shah to resolve the border dispute between the two states. Let there be peace, he added.
