In a shocking incident, 17 under-construction houses of Bengali families in Tripura sanctioned under government schemes were vandalized and demolished by unidentified miscreants. Miscreants also looted crops and cattle of the victims.
The incident took place at the night of the Republic Day in North Brahmachara village under Teliamura police station. The attackers also left a threatening message on the streets, saying “WANSEA GET OUT, RED ZONE”.
The incident sparked outrage among the Bengali community, who staged a road blockade on Saturday morning on the Brahmachhara-Kankrachhara-Nunachhara road. They accused a section of miscreants of trying to incite communal violence in the state, and referred to the social media post by Pradyot Kishore Debbarman, the leader of TIPRA Motha, a local political party.
On January 25, Debbarman posted a picture of an application written by one individual, Nirmal Acharjee, addressed to the DM West, requesting for giving land to the landless non-tribals in TTAADC areas. TTAADC is the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council, which covers 68% of the state’s area and is governed by the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Debbarman wrote along with the picture, “Not one inch of land will be given in the Sixth Schedule area. If you want to settle people then do so elsewhere in India, Tiprasa people have given enough sacrifice”.
The victims of North Brahmachara said that the attack on their under construction houses was a consequence of Debbarman’s statement, which they claimed was provocative and divisive.
North Brahmachara village, adjacent to another village called Kalai Para, used to be a mixed settlement of Bengalis and tribals. However, during the communal riots in 1980, many Bengali families fled the village and settled near Teliamura town.
Again, in 2000, when another wave of communal hatred swept the state, the remaining Bengali families left their ancestral homes and took shelter in different places.
Since then, they have been living a precarious life, farming on their own lands during the day and returning to their shelters at night. After the BJP government came to power in the state, they were given government houses
However, the vandalism and looting of their houses have reignited the fear and tension in the area.
The protesters demanded an immediate solution to the issue and the setting up of an SPO camp in the area.
A large police force, including the District Superintendent of Police, DCM and BDO, rushed to the spot after getting the information of the blockade.
Later, the blockade was lifted after the villagers received specific assurances and the situation was brought under control with the intervention of local MLA and Minister Bikas Debbarma, who spoke to the protesters over the phone.
