Assam Congress Leaders Arrested During Protest for Party Member's Death
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Guwahati, December 20 (NationPress) Prominent Congress figures, including Bhupen Borah, the head of the Assam unit, were apprehended on Friday after they engaged in a protest rally in Guwahati seeking justice for the death of Mridul Islam, a Congress worker.
Alongside Borah, other notable leaders such as Ripun Borah, Uday Bhanu Chib, and senior spokesperson Ratul Kalita were also taken into custody by law enforcement, causing a disruption to the Congress party’s demonstration.
Reportedly, the leaders were detained at the 10th APBN in Kahilipara, Guwahati.
In response, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has initiated an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of the Congress party worker.
Mridul Islam, aged 45, passed away on Wednesday after taking part in a Congress protest march to Raj Bhawan in Guwahati. The Congress party has accused the police of deploying excessive tear gas to disrupt the rally, which they claim led to Islam’s premature death.
The local Congress unit has filed a complaint against the police, asserting that the use of tear gas was excessive and resulted in Mridul Islam's death.
According to party sources, Islam was a member of the State Congress Legal Cell and a practicing lawyer.
As stated by Assam Congress General Secretary Bipul Gogoi, the tear gas deployment by state police was not only excessive but also indiscriminate, impacting everyone nearby, including the elderly, children, and those with respiratory issues, and was done without provocation.
The state Congress claims that Mridul Islam was among many protesters who were injured due to police actions and were already struggling due to the effects of the tear gas.
“It is evident that the actions of the Assam Police directly contributed to his tragic demise. This FIR aims to demand immediate and stringent action against the police personnel responsible for their excessive and unlawful use of force, which directly resulted in the death of an innocent citizen,” Gogoi stated in his complaint.
Diganta Barah, the Commissioner of Police in Guwahati, has denied the Congress party's allegations, noting that the exact cause of Islam's death remains undetermined.
