In Nov 2022 — a year after clashes between police forces of both states claimed 7 lives — it was agreed Mizoram should submit its territorial claims. But there’s been no word from Assam.
Families on Assam side of the Lailapur-Vairengte border with Mizoram claim they live under constant fear, scared things ‘may blow up any time', which would force them out of their homes.
Such is the tension at Kulichera on the Assam-Mizoram border that CRPF anticipated trouble here. Instead, both forces clashed at Vairengte on 26 July, which left 6 Assam personnel dead.
Asaam under BJP has stumbled from one divisive row to another — from NRC-CAA to Cattle Preservation Bill, population control policy and now the border clash with Mizoram.
Assam has blockaded NH 306, which connects Mizoram with the rest of the country, and not for the first time. Last year, the highway was blocked for a month in October following similar clashes.
Demarcation of disputed boundary between Assam and Mizoram aside, the current tension has more to do with people, and the perception that Assam is resorting to force.
In tactical terms, the shirtless protest was worse than a self-goal. Suddenly, the fiascos of the AI Summit were forgotten, and the Youth Congress’s disruption became the issue.
IAF is fine with accepting the aircraft with 'must-haves', even if some other steps remain pending, which may take at least another year, it is learnt.
COMMENTS