The state government has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident (File)
A Tripura fire service personnel, who was beaten on Saturday by those protesting against the state government’s decision to settle Mizoram’s Bru refugees in Kanchanpur sub-division in the state, died today, taking the death count in the violence to two. The man, identified as Biswajit Debbarma, was attacked at Panisagar in north Tripura when he was trying to return to his house, police said.
On Saturday, a protestor, Srikanta Das, was killed and 35 others, including security and fire service personnel, were injured when police fired upon the mob that had attacked the security forces.
The state government has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident.
Paramilitaries Assam Rifles and Border Security Force have been deployed in Kanchanpur subdivision of north Tripura after Saturday’s violence. An indefinite shutdown called by the protestors continued today.
The blockade of the national highway has been lifted, the government sources said on Sunday.
In January this year, an agreement was signed between the government and the Reang community, locally called “Bru”, regarding rehabilitation of the families living in relief camps in Kanchanpur. They had migrated from Mizoram to Tripura in 1997 following ethnic conflict.
The shutdown was called by the Joint Movement Committee — an outfit comprising local Bengalis and Mizo people in Kanchanpur. They say the arrival of the refugees will disturb the ethnic harmony in the region.
Thousands of protestors have been staging demonstrations outside government offices in open defiance of the administration’s ban on assemblies.
Meanwhile, the Tripura police, in a tweet, said, “The unfortunate incident at North Tripura was a law & order issue but in social media videos are being circulated to give the incident the colour of communal violence. Sharing such videos with intent to spread ethnic hatred is a punishable legal offence.”
