Two Bengali Muslims killed, 33 others including police injured during eviction drive in Assam

The incident took place when a team of officials from Sonapur revenue circle and police personnel went to Kochutoli village and asked the alleged encroachers to vacate the government land.

Guwahati: Two people belonging to the Bengali Muslim community died in police firing on Thursday near Assam capital Guwahati after a mob of alleged illegal settlers attacked government officials and police personnel.

The victims have been identified as Zubahir Ali, 19 and Haidar Ali, 22, police said. Eleven other protesters were also injured in the clash.

Director general of police, GP Singh said the alleged encroachers also injured 22 police personnel including women. The incident took place when a team of officials from Sonapur revenue circle and police personnel went to Kochutoli village and asked the alleged encroachers to vacate the tribal land, which is protected for tribals only. He said during the eviction drive since Monday, 248 bighas of government land were cleared and 237 illegally constructed structures were removed by the authorities. The eviction was carried out as the land is reserved for tribals and non-tribals are not permitted to occupy or buy those land.

Sources said many of those evicted from the land since Monday had returned and were living in makeshift tents.

"As the officials on Thursday went there and asked them to vacate the land, a large crowd came chasing and attacked the officials with sticks and sharp objects. Police initially fired in the air but as the crowd did not relent and kept attacking the officials and police personnel, police had to open fire. Two of them succumbed to bullet injuries in Sonapur hospital," an official of Kamrup Metro district, under which the area comes, said.

The Sonapur revenue circle officer, Nitul Khatoniar was also injured in the attack by the mob, he said. Singh said Guwahati police have been instructed to identify those who had attacked the government officials and police, for action.

The official said the eviction was carried out as part of Assam government's directive to clear the government and forest land from encroachers.

Anti-Muslim drive

Many among those evicted told reporters that it was a drive targeting the Bengali Muslims as the BJP government had similarly evicted many belonging to the minority community in the past, while Assamese people were not evicted from government land.

Reacting to the incident, Maulana Barduddin Ajmal, the chief of All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), an Opposition party, said the killing of the two homeless villagers was inhuman. He urged the government to halt eviction drives without arranging for their resettlement in alternative lands.

In September 2021, two persons belonging to Bengali Muslims were similarly killed in police firing during an eviction drive at Gorukhuti in Darrang district in North Assam. Police had said they had to open fire after the alleged encroachers attacked officials and police personnel. The incident triggered a strong reaction among the Opposition parties. The Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government, however, defended it saying the government would act tough against "illegal migrants" occupying forest and government land and those would only be given to the landless indigenous people.