M A I N   N E W S

Biharis attacked in Assam

Guwahati, November 15
In an apparent retaliation to the attacks on the Assamese train passengers in Bihar, stray incidents of violence targeting people from Bihar were reported in Assam today with the ULFA asking them to leave the state immediately and the All-Assam Students Union (AASU) calling for a statewide bandh on November 17.

Guwahati SP Hiren Nath said unidentified people attacked a group of students who had come from Bihar at the Guwahati railway station this morning.

In the scuffle two persons were injured, but they were not from among the students, Mr Nath said. Three huts on the hills near Guwahati University were set ablaze but none was injured last night.

Some roadside shops near the Nehru Stadium here were also attacked and three persons received minor injuries yesterday.

Some agitated youths also damaged railway property at Tinsukia yesterday.

Meanwhile, ULFA’s Commander-in-Chief Paresh Baruah, in a statement to the local media, has asked the people from Bihar residing in Assam to leave the state immediately and warned that it was planning retaliatory attacks.

The AASU has given a call for a 24-hour statewide bandh on the same issue.

In a joint statement to the media yesterday, the ULFA and the NDFB have warned of “consequences” that would have “far-reaching repercussions” throughout the region if innocent passengers continued to be attacked in Bihar.

Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi today ordered the removal of the District Magistrate and the SP of Munger for alleged slackness on their part to contain violence.

“Violence won’t be tolerated at any cost... People of all states are like brothers and what happened at the Jamalpur station in Munger district against Assamese travellers and those from other north-eastern states was the result of utter failure of the administration to handle the situation,” the Chief Minister told reporters after holding a high-level meeting.

The Chief Minister and the RJD chief, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, also had telephonic talks with the Railway Minister, Mr Nitish Kumar, and assured him of full cooperation in tackling the situation and safeguarding the property of the railways and checking violence.

Reacting to the incidents, Mr Kumar called upon political parties and youth to exercise restraint and ensure that violence did not recur. “India is one. People of all states are one. All should refrain from creating an atmosphere that might threaten unity and integrity of the country,” he said.

He said the Railways had already announced to hold exams afresh for the students who were prevented from appearing in the group-D exams conducted by the Guwahati Railway Recruitment Board in Assam on Sunday.

Several Assamese passengers were assaulted in the past few days by students in Katihar, Jamalpur and Kishangunj stations of Bihar for allegedly preventing Bihari students from appearing in a railway recruitment test at Maligaon in Assam on November 9. — PTI