Violence over CAA: Death toll hits 3 in Meghalaya
A 37-year-old man was killed by three unidentified people at his home in Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district in the early hours yesterday, taking the toll from clashes over amended citizenship law and inner line permit issues in the Indian state to three, police said.
The situation was already tense following the death of two persons in separate attacks in Ichamati area in East Khasi Hills district on Friday and at state capital Shillong's Iewduh market on Saturday.
After the clashes, curfew was imposed at noon in the two police station areas in Shillong while night curfew was imposed in the entire city.
The night curfew was lifted from many parts of the city yesterday, reported our New Delhi correspondent.
However, East Khasi Hills district authorities said the curfew was extended in areas under the jurisdiction of Lumdiengjri and Sadar police stations, and Cantonment Beat House over fears that there might be a serious breakdown of law and order in those places.
Mobile internet and messaging services have been temporarily suspended in six districts of the Khasi and Jaintia Hills region to curtail rumours that could deteriorate law and order, state officials said.
The tension started on Friday when clashes broke out between Khasi Students' Union (KSU) members and non-tribals during a rally organised against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and demanding implementation of the Inner Line Permit (ILP), at Ichamati, district Superintendent of Police Claudia Lyngwa said.
Eight people have been arrested in this case and a magisterial inquiry has been instituted to probe into the incident, she said.
One person was stabbed to death at the Iewduh market under Cantonment Beat House on Saturday when unidentified persons went on an attacking spree that left seven others seriously injured, the SP said, adding that no one has been arrested so far in this connection.
Three companies of central forces have been deployed in the sensitive areas of the district, including in the affected areas of the city, the officials said.
Governor Tathagata Roy and Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma have appealed to the citizens to maintain peace. Both had taken to social media to issue their appeals even as mobile internet services were suspended in the six districts.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act makes religion the test of citizenship in India for the first time. The government says it will help minorities from three Muslim-dominated countries to get citizenship if they fled to India because of religious persecution.
Critics say it is designed to discriminate against Muslims and violates the secular principles of the constitution.
The indigenous people of the northeastern states are worried that the entry of these people will endanger their identity and livelihood.
Inner Line Permit is an official travel document issued by the concerned state government to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected area for a limited period. It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those states to obtain a permit for entering into the protected state.
Protesters in Meghalaya has been demanding for ILP to be implemented in their state. ILP is in place in Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.