Guwahati: Curfew was relaxed but tension prevailed in Rabha community areas in Assam`s Goalpara and Kamrup districts even as the toll in panchayat poll-related violence rose to 21 with the discovery of another body on Thursday, said officials.
There was no fresh violence since Wednesday evening except for one incident at Gobindapur area in Goalpara where some inmates of a relief camp attacked a delegation of the Congress, reaching there to take stock of the situation.
Congress leader and former MP Anowar Hussain and his security personnel received injuries during the attack, police said adding that the inmates also partially damaged the vehicle of the delegation. Hussain`s condition is, however, out of danger now.
"There had been no fresh incidents in last 24 hours and the situation is under control. Curfew had been relaxed in most of the violence affected areas except for areas under two police stations - Krishnai and Mornoi in Goalpara district," said Assam`s Home Secretary GD Tripathy.
He said that one more body was recovered during the day taking the death toll to 21.
The administration had set up 12 relief camps in Goalpara district and they are housing about 10,000 people, he added.
Violence broke out in Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council (RHAC) areas on Tuesday when the government tried to hold panchayat polls in the areas, despite stiff opposition from the Rabha community organisations, who had been demanding elections to the RHAC since a long time.
Security forces opened firing in a bid to save polling officials from being lynched by the angry mob, which led to more violence and damage to public property.
Tripathy confirmed that while 14 people were killed in firing by the police and security forces, the other seven were killed in attacks by the miscreants.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had on Wednesday admitted lapses on the part of the government for the violence in RHAC but termed it a "political conspiracy".
IANS
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.