By IANS
Guwahati : A 36-hour general strike called by tribals across Assam Monday was marred by violence and arson with strike supporters killing one person and injuring at least 20 others, officials said.
The strike, which began at 5 a.m., has been called by the All Adivasi Students Association (AASA), in protest against Saturday’s mob violence here that had left one of their community members dead and more than 200 injured.
The Adivasis, who account for about six percent of Assam’s 26 million people, are mostly engaged in the state’s 800-odd tea plantations.
“Strike supporters waylaid a vehicle in the western Kokrajhar district and attacked its occupants before setting the car ablaze. One person was lynched and two others were injured,” a police spokesperson said.
Saturday’s clashes took place after thousands of Adivasis marching through a street in Guwahati to press for recognition of the community as a Scheduled Tribe for greater reservation and other benefits, clashed with locals after some of the protesters pelted stones at vehicles and ransacked shops.
The AASA strike, backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party, has evoked a mixed response across Assam with major cities including Guwahati remaining free from its impact. The AASA has said it would ‘not spare anybody’ violating the strike.
However, the strike affected areas surrounding tea gardens with reports of arson coming in from various parts of Assam.
“A truck was set ablaze near the Assam-West Bengal border, while at least 100 vehicles damaged in incidents of stone pelting in various parts of the state,” the police official said.
In eastern Assam’s Tinsukia district, clashes erupted once again between the Adivasis and Assamese people after some strike supporters damaged a few vehicles on a highway.
“Eight Adivasi activists were beaten up by local people when they damaged some public transport while trying to enforce the strike,” the official said. There were similar reports of retaliatory strikes by the Adivasis from the tea belt of Sonitpur in northern Assam and the eastern Sivasagar and Jorhat districts.
“We have sounded a red alert across the State, and asked the police and the paramilitary to maintain strict vigil in all Adivasi strongholds, mostly the tea garden areas,” Minister Ripun Bora said.
An Adivasi militant group called The Adivasi National Liberation Army (ANLA) has, meanwhile, set a 36-hour deadline to the Assam government to furnish a list of those dead and injured in Saturday’s clashes.
Adivasi leaders in the State have refused to accept the claim of the authorities that only one of the protesters had died in the clashes in Guwahati. AASA president Justin Lakra told reporters at least 20 of their protesters were killed in the clashes.
“The bodies have gone missing mysteriously,” he alleged.
Several Adivasi leaders including former Jharkhand chief minister Arjun Munda, and JMM leader Shibu Soren are already camping in Guwahati, visiting hospitals and meeting with government leaders to assess the situation.
Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Monday ordered a judicial investigation to probe Saturday’s mob violence.
“We shall not spare anybody found guilty,” Gogoi said.
Assam’s main opposition Asom Gana Parishad has called for Gogoi’s resignation alleging total failure and inaction by the police.