Cong MP Gaurav Gogoi writes to Amit Shah, seeks intervention into Assam-Mizoram border dispute

PTI, Jul 27, 2021, 3:14 PM IST

Guwahati: A day after the Assam-Mizoram border clash claimed the lives of at least five policemen, one civilian and left 50 others injured, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Tuesday wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking his intervention to ensure peace at the inter-state boundary between the two states. The Lok Sabha MP also said the violence along the disputed border is a ‘failure of the constitutional machinery” to ensure safety of people.

“This is not just a failure of peace at the border, but a failure of the constitutional machinery of the state that failed to protect its men,” Gogoi said. At least six persons were killed and 50 others, including an SP, injured in a bloody clash between the police forces of the two states along the Assam-Mizoram border on Monday. The incident came two days after Shah held talks with the chief ministers of eight northeastern states and underscored the need to resolve lingering border disputes.

“This (violence) is despite the Home Minister’s visit to the northeast barely a few days prior to the incident, promising prosperity in the region and stability with regard to the border issues. Yet these atrocities continue,” Gogoi said in the letter. Shah had spoken to the chief ministers of Assam and Mizoram, Himanta Biswa Sarma and Zoramthanga respectively, and urged them to ensure peace along the disputed border and find an amicable settlement. Gogoi said disputes and instability along the inter-state boundary of Assam with Mizoram have been continuing for a while now, and the recent incidents draw special attention as “both sides claim to have rights over the land historically, which only further aggravates the tensions”. The deputy leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha said more lives cannot be put in danger.

“Therefore, I urge you to take the matter into immediate consideration for appropriate action. The government ought to ensure safety and peace at the borders of Assam,” Gogoi said in his letter to Shah. Assam”s Barak Valley districts of Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi share a 164-km long border with Mizoram”s three districts of Aizawl, Kolasib and Mamit. After allegations of encroachment of territory by both sides over the past few weeks and skirmishes that escalated tensions between the two states, violent clashes were reported along the inter-state border that ended in the death of at least five Assam policemen and one civilian.