Assam Lynching: Police Lathi-Charge as Protests Turn Violent

Nearly 60,000 people turned up to protest against the lynching of the two youths.

Nilotpal Das (29), a sound engineer based in Mumbai, and his friend Abhijeet Nath (30), a businessman were lynched by a mob in Karbi Anglong district of Assam.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/The Voice Of Inquilab‏)

Video Editor: Mohd Irshad Alam

Thousands of protesters gathered at the Guwahati Commerce College and blocked the busy RG Baruah Road on Saturday, 10 June, to protest against the mob lynching of two youths – Nilotpal Das and Abhijeet Nath – in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district the previous night.

An angry mob lynched two youths from Guwahati to death because they were allegedly suspected to be “child lifters.” This comes in the context of many rumours of a child-lifting gang operating in the area.

The victims, both in their 30s, had gone for a short vacation from Guwahati to the picnic spot Kangthilangso in Karbi Anglong. Abhijeet was a businessman based in Mumbai, and Nilotpal was a sound engineer.

The visuals sent shockwaves across Assam as thousands took to the streets demanding justice.

In some chilling videos that are doing the rounds, locals can be seen mercilessly beating the two with sticks. In one of the videos, Nilotpal Basu can also be seen pleading for his life, stating over and over again that he is an Assamese.

Protests in Guwahati Turn Violent

A Facebook group 'Justice for Nilotpal and Abhijeet' was started on 9 June to give a call for protest, and it managed to mobilise nearly 60,000 people within 24 hours, PTI reported.

However, what started out as a peaceful protest turned violent with police resorting to mild lathi-charge.

Students and civil rights activists protested in Guwahati on Sunday.

Till the time they were peaceful, we had no objection and allowed them to express their feelings. But as it was already around three hours of protest in the form of road blockade, we requested them to leave in the evening and most of the agitators had left.

Deputy Commissioner (Central) of Guwahati Police Ranjan Bhuyan to PTI.

However, close to hundred protesters became adamant, refusing to leave the spot and even started drinking alcohol on the road. They threw stones and bottles on policemen, the Commissioner added.

Media persons were also a target of protests, but none were reported to have been injured, PTI reported.

Protesters clashed with the police in Guwahati late last night.

“We had no option but to use mild lathicharge to disperse them,” Bhuyan told PTI.

“The two should have informed the police before visiting the picturesque district,” Karbi Anglong Deputy Commissioner Mridul Kumar Mahanta had reportedly said.

“Some people had called Guwahati Police Commissioner Hiren Chandra Nath to inform about their protest plans and candle light procession,” he told PTI. But that remained an "informal intimation."

‘If Assamese People Are Not Safe in Assam, Where Will We Go?’ Asks Protester

The All Assam Students' Union, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad, and the Karbi Students' Association protested at Dokmoka police station, under the jurisdiction of which the site of the crime falls.

"If Assamese people are not safe in Assam, where will we go? This cannot go on. The culprits must get exemplary punishment," PTI quoted a student of Guwahati University as saying.

Police said they had arrested 15 people in connection with the incident.

Besides, demanding that the “trial be conducted in a fast track court”, protester Wasim Ahmed also demanded “an Act to be formed for such cases.”

“We want that the deputy commissioner who made an irresponsible statement be sacked immediately,” he added.

One of the women protesters said, "We have come out not only for demanding justice for Nilotpal and Abhijeet alone, but for all who have been victims of any kind of superstition. And this case should not continue for one or two years. We want speedy justice," reported PTI.

Protests were also organised at other spots in Numaligarh and Diphu.

Protestors gathered in the city’s Chandmari area and shouted slogans demanding the resignation of Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal, Scroll reported. 

The victims were reportedly pulled out, tied and beaten to death by the mob. 

In chilling videos that have gone viral, locals beat the two men mercilessly with sticks.

The incident comes in the context of many rumours of a child-lifting gang operating in the area.

The men – Niloptal Das and Abhijeet Nath – were artistes based in Goa and were back home for the Bohag Bihu festival.

Residents of Pragati Nagar and Ganapati, Lal Ganesh conduct a candle night march.

CM Sonowal held a high-level meeting to review the situation and asked DGP to prevent spread of rumours and take action against troublemakers.

(With inputs from PTI)