Assam MP asks Mizoram to apologise for clashes at border

Mizoram home minister Lalchamliana has accused Assam Police of entering his state’s territory, damaging vehicles, and indulging in arson

Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national general secretary Dilip Saikia on Tuesday asked Mizoram to apologise over the clashes triggered by its border dispute with Assam on Monday that left five Assamese policemen dead.

A damaged security force vehicle at the site of the Monday's clashes at Lailapur on the Assam-Mizoram border, in Cachar distric. (PTI)

“What Mizoram police along with local people did yesterday (Monday) is strongly condemnable. I condemn this barbaric attack on the Assamese people and police. This type of incident will demoralise the spirit of Indian nationalism,” said Saikia, who is a Member of Parliament from Assam.

He added the border dispute is decades old and the violence is the first such incident. Saikia claimed some people “are dancing and rejoicing the violence” and called it demoralising without elaborating. He asked the state governments to sit together and find an amicable solution. “There is a need for a comprehensive action plan to find a solution (to the dispute),” he said. He added Assam has border disputes also with Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland. “The Interstate issues should be solved...”