Assam burns, curfew in Guwahati, Army deployed

Guwahati/Agartala, Dec 11

Guwahati, the epicentre of anti-CAB protests, was placed under indefinite curfew while Army was called in at three places and Assam Rifles personnel deployed in Tripura on Wednesday as the two northeastern states plunged into chaos over the hugely emotive Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, officials said.

Army PRO Lt Col P Khongsai said two Army columns had been deployed in Guwahati. Army has also been deployed in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts. The house of Union Minister Rameswar Teli in Assam’s Duliajan was attacked.

Internet services have been suspended in 10 districts of Assam. Internet services are already suspended in Tripura for 48 hours from 2 pm on Tuesday. As tens of thousands of anti-CAB protesters descended on the streets of Assam, clashing with police, being baton-charged and plunging the state into chaos of a magnitude unseen since the violent six-year movement by students that ended with Assam accord, Guwahati was placed under curfew.

Initially, Assam police chief Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta said the curfew, which began at 6.15 pm on Wednesday, will continue till 7 am on Thursday. However, he later said it had been extended indefinitely. Defying the curfew order, protesters were still on the streets of Guwahati where most arterial roads were blocked. Railway stations in Dibrugarh’s Chabua and Tinsukia’s Panitola were torched, a Northeast Frontier Railway spokesperson said.

The Congress has called a shutdown in Tripura on Thursday. — PTI

Annual India-Japan summit may be hit

New Delhi: Uncertainty surrounds the annual India-Japan summit in Guwahati later this week. Sources said there was no change of venue as of now. Assam Deputy CM presented the ground situation to External Affairs Minister as protesters burnt down the ramp built for welcoming Japanese PM Shinzo Abe and PM Modi. TNS