Baksa boils over student leader's death, curfew on

GUWAHATI: Hundreds of locals at Mushalpur in Baksa district of Bodoland Territorial Areas District (BTAD) clashed with security forces after former student leader Manoj Das' body was handed over to his family members on Thursday.
Das was shot dead by unidentified gunmen when he came to Mushalpur town for his father's treatment on Wednesday evening. Police have recovered arms and ammunition from the spot.
Das, a central committee member of Aasu's Asom Sena wing, was actively involved in the election campaign of Sonmilito Jonogosthiyo Oikyo Mancho (SJOM)-backed candidate Naba Kumar Sarania in the just-concluded Lok Sabha election. SJOM is a non-Bodo platform of different organizations opposing the formation of BTAD.
Security forces fired teargas shells and rubber bullets and resorted to lathicharge to disperse the protesters. A curfew, imposed on Wednesday after Das' death, is still on in Baksa to prevent any untoward incident.
"Some of the protesters went away when we explained to them that the curfew is still on. However, about 300 of them refused to go back. They insisted on taking out a protest rally. When we did not allow them, they clashed with security forces," said SP (Baksa) M Rahman.
District administrative officials said curfew will remain in force till 9am on Friday. "If the situation improves, we may relax curfew," an official said.
BTAD Citizen Rights Forum (BCRF), one of the constituents of SJOM, condemned the killing of the student leader. It said the death has once again highlighted the insecurity of people living in BTAD. Police officials said five persons are being interrogated.
"Our investigation is on. We have gathered some vital clues and we will proceed accordingly to book the culprits," Rahman said.
IGP (law and order) S N Singh is also camping in Baksa to supervise the situation in the district. Baksa has become one of the most sensitive districts in BTAD following the killing of 44 Muslims by unidentified gunmen in May and four traders this month.
Two columns of Army have been deployed for providing security in Baksa following Wednesday's killing. Army spokesperson Lt Col Suneet Newton said the deployment has been made after a request by the district administration.