Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday said that his government will move the Gauhati High Court for an early order on its previous stay on the eviction in grazing lands in West Karbi Anglong and Karbi Anglong districts. The chief minister said this after an area of West Karbi Anglong witnessed violence between the indigenous Karbi and the Bihari communities, in which two persons were killed and 70 people, mostly police personnel, injured earlier this week. A tripartite meeting was held during the day among the state government, Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) and protestors demanding immediate clearing of encroachment of Village Grazing Reserve (VGR) and Professional Grazing Reserve (PGR) lands in West Karbi Anglong district. Assam govt to move HC, cancel illegal trade licences, fence PGR-VGR land.
Karbi Anglong unrest: Assam govt to move HC, cancel illegal trade licences, fence PGR-VGR land. A crucial tripartite meeting involving the Assam government, Karbi organisations and the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council was held in Guwahati on December 26 to address the violent situation in West Karbi Anglong and the long-pending disputes over Professional Grazing Reserve and Village Grazing Reserve lands. Speaking after the meeting, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said several key decisions were taken to bring immediate clarity and restore normalcy. He said it was decided that all stakeholders would jointly approach the Gauhati High Court to seek an early resolution of the VGR-PGR issue. The government also decided to shift all government offices located within VGR and PGR areas and to fence all vacant land immediately. A deforestation drive will be carried out in vacant areas to prevent fresh encroachment, he added.
The Chief Minister further said that trade licences illegally issued over the past five years would be cancelled, and eviction proceedings would be initiated against people occupying various categories of government and departmental land, including irrigation department land. He also announced that a government job would be provided to the family of the victim who lost his life during the recent violence and that police cases linked to the agitation would be withdrawn. Sarma said another round of talks would be held on January 16 or 17 to resolve the remaining issues. He described the discussion as constructive and said it had brought to light that the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council had not filed an affidavit before the High Court for the last two years, which delayed resolution of the matter. He said the council had now been directed to file its affidavit by January 5 to remove legal uncertainty. Expressing optimism, Sarma said he stood with the people of Karbi Anglong and was confident that the issues could be resolved amicably with time.
