MHA must act on illegal arms in neighbouring states: Assam sources

Official sources in Assam have said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) must act against illegal firearms available to miscreants in neighbouring states, or attacks on Assamese people will continue. The statement follows a firing by miscreants from Arunachal Pradesh that injured 11 people.

The sources said such attacks have gone on for years, with miscreants in Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh possessing illegal weapons while Assamese villagers are unarmed. They added that most interstate borders pass through reserve forests, where miscreants encroach for cultivation, including palm oil, sometimes with tacit backing from state government machinery.

Assam forces have been asked to maintain restraint, the sources said, and firing back is avoided because a killing would cause a big outcry. The Assam government cannot act on illegal weapons in neighbouring states, leaving the MHA to take a strong stand.