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Assam-Meghalaya : Quit notice fuels boundary row |
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The Assam Government on May 27 rushed additional forces to Karbi Anglong and contemplated deploying the army as tension mounted in the disputed Block II of the Assam-Meghalaya border after Khasi-Pnars were asked to leave the district by May 31.
Sources said the Quit Notice originated from the office of the Karbi Anglong Autonomous District Council.
Several organisations of Meghalaya reacted strongly to the ‘bullying tactics’, warning of serious repercussions. The Hynniewtrep National Youth Front said the quit notice could trigger a backlash against Karbi residents of Meghalaya.
Two years ago, thousands of Khasi-Pnars fled to Shahsniang village in the bordering Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya to escape alleged atrocities by the militant United Peoples Democratic Solidarity.
Sources in Dispur said the government was determined to prevent a repeat of those incidents and would deal with the situation accordingly. ‘If required, we will even requisition the services of the army,’ an official said.
Meghalaya claims that over 300 square km in the two blocks have been ‘wrongfully demarcated’ and occupied by Assam. The governments of both states want the autonomous councils of Karbi Anglong and the Jaintia Hills to take the lead in ending the impasse.
The two councils formed a joint fact-finding committee last year to find a way to end the boundary dispute. But the situation came to a head when the fifth round of parleys, held in February, ended in a deadlock.
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