Red alert in Tripura after massacre

The district authorities have promulgated prohibitory orders to prevent recurrence of any kind of violence after the massacre. The prohibitory orders would remain enforced till further orders, the sources added.

Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, who also holds the home portfolio, held a high level meeting here with senior police and civil officials to review the situation.

The Chief Minister asked the security officials to intensify the anti-insurgency operations to nab the militants responsible for the massacre, the first of its kind this year.

The massacre came a fortnight before the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTADC) elections, slated for April 30 and May 3. The Khas Kalyanpur village falls under the TTAADC areas.

Sources said that about 25 guerrillas, belonging to the banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT), surrounded the village and adjacent market shortly after dusk and set on fire a large number of houses. As the villagers came out of their dwellings, the militants sprayed bullets from their automatic weapons killing 11 people on the spot and injuring eight others.

Of the victims, four were women. The injured were admitted to different government hospitals here and in Kalyanpur.

Saturday’s massacre was the second biggest militants’ attack on civilians during the past four years. Earlier, on November 14 last year, the ultras gunned down 18 people at Panchabati in the same West Tripura district.

Kalyanpur, under Khowai-sub-division and 50 km from here, witnessed a series of militant attacks during December, 1996 forcing the State Government to promulgate the Disturbed Areas Act in 27 out of 45 police station areas in the State. On December 12, 1996, at least 26 people were massacred by militants in Kalyanpur areas, mostly dominated by the non-tribals.

Meanwhile, the 13-hour curfew, which ended at 0500 hours on Sunday morning, would be re-imposed for another eleven hours from 1600 hours in West Tripura district’s Jirania police station area which witnessed a series of ethnic violence, arson, attacks and counter attacks since Monday last.

However, the Jirania areas remained peaceful during the past 48 hours, the sources added. Security forces were also maintaining a strict vigil in the violence-hit areas.

More than 15,000 affected and fear-stricken people are lodged in the relief camps and the State Government was providing relief to the people.