Guwahati: In what has created tension and panic among the Hindi-speaking people in Upper Assam’s Dibrugarh district, a mob of more than 100 people belonging to Takam Mising Porin Kebang (TMPK) attacked a village of milkmen and set 20 houses on fire.
One person was killed and six critically injured when the mob, armed with sharp weapons and sticks, unleashed terror. They fled to the nearby forest soon thereafter.
Though senior district and police officers could not be contacted, personnel from the local police station said that the incident occurred at Charkholia Ramsing sapori village of the district Saturday night.
Stating that the villagers were served extortion notices demanding that amounts ranging from `20,000 to `50,000 be paid to TMPK, security sources said that the village was specifically targeted because the locals expressed their inability to cough up the amounts.
Police said that one Murli Yadav, who was critically injured, was shifted to Assam Medical College and Hospital where he subsequently succumbed to his injuries.
Six others are reported to have been treated in different private hospitals, security sources said, while pointing out that tension was mounting in the neighbouring region as well.
The villagers had actually submitted the extortion threats issued on the letterheads of Takam Mising Porin Kebang (TMPK), Laimekuri Anchalik Committee, Dhemaji, to the local police, which failed to initiate any action.
Meanwhile, sources claimed that a team of district administration and police has been rushed to the troubled area to find out if any insurgent group had instigated the mob fury.
The villagers have accused the police of not taking their pleas seriously and denying protection to them.
“We are looking into all these aspects,” said a senior police officer, who refused to be named.
