Assam: Opposition calls bulldozer ‘revenge’, BJP blames ‘jihadists’

Guwahati: Opposition parties in Assam on Monday bulldozed the houses of villagers allegedly involved in the burning of a police station in a seemingly retaliatory attack after a man was killed in custody in Nagoan district and an attack on a force post. Condemned both.

The ruling BJP, however, defended the administration’s move, blaming the ‘jihadists’ for burning the Batadrava police station.
On Saturday, a mob set fire to a police station after a local man, Mahfouz al-Islam, died in custody, which was picked up the night before.

The next day, the district administration conducted an eviction drive in Islam’s Salnabori village and bulldozed the houses of the victim and several of his relatives, accusing them of being “occupiers” and of “forged land documents”. Lived there with

The state Congress has appointed a seven-member committee headed by its acting president Rana Goswamito visit Batadrava and review the situation there.
The panel, which includes Batadrava MLA Sibamoni Bora, will talk to locals to find out the root causes of the incidents and submit its report within two days.

The party said in a statement that it was “shocked” to learn that many local homes had been bulldozed.
Congress MP Abdul Khaliq said on Twitter that his party would never support an attack on a police station but that bulldozing the homes of suspected assailants by police was a “direct violation of human rights”.

Trinamool Congress state president Ripin Bora said the police station fire was a matter of “concern” as it reflected the “loss of confidence” in the rule of law.

“It shows that people are losing faith in the law, and burning down a police station is a threat to law and order. Deaths in custody also indicate a complete disregard for legal procedures.” ‘ They said.
The former state MP also maintained that “the gap between the people and the police has widened” since the Himanta Biswa-led government came to power last year.

Describing the arson attack on a police station after his death in custody as “anarchy”, Assam Jatiya Parishad chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi said, “It cannot be accepted. Such incidents occur when respect for the law is low. When the Chief Minister openly supports open contests, he is bound to follow them.
On a subsequent eviction campaign, he claimed that it reflected the “vengeful nature of the government.”

“Whenever this government does not like anyone or anything, it forces the police to take action against them (eviction) was a step of revenge,” he said.

Describing the attack on the police station as an “organized terrorist act”, the ruling BJP claimed that “trained jihadists” were involved in the arson.

The saffron camp also welcomed the eviction drive.

Senior BJP spokespersons Ranjiv Kumar Sarma and Subhash Dutta have claimed that “Muslim miscreants based in Bangladesh were trained in PFI camps to carry out a systematic attack on the Batadrava police station”.
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He urged the police to “consider the attackers as perpetrators of crime against the nation” and to take stern action against them.

The ruling party welcomed the decision to take action against illegal encroachments after the incident.