Assam Rifles men ‘beat up’ villagers, 50 in hospital

Speaking to The Indian Express at the RIMS, the villagers said they had heard exchange of fire near their village at around 9.30 pm on Sunday. “An hour or so later, the AR landed up at our village and started hammering on our doors, asking all the male members to come out. They then made us squat and hold our ears by looping our arms between the legs and began thrashing us with sticks and rifle butts,” says Th Amuthoi (37), with his arm in a sling.

“It seems they suspected us of hiding the presence of militants near our village. They didn’t let us get up till around 7.30 am, when the police arrived, but by then we were asked to get up and move to another place for verification. We weren’t allowed to return to our houses. We’re now scared to return to our village in case they (AR) return and harass us further,” M Indrajit (33) said.

However, the AR denied that any of the villagers had been physically assaulted. According to Col L M Pant, PRO, IGAR (S), an AR party attached to the 21 AR based at Pangaltabi nearby had been ambushed in the vicinity of the village. “The ambush has been confirmed as having been carried out by the PREPAK. We lost a rifleman named Martoba, and in the retaliatory fire two militants were injured. In the subsequent search carried out, one blood-soaked pair of trousers was recovered. The villagers were only questioned about the movement of militants in their area. No one was beaten up or harassed.”