GUWAHATI, Feb 15 - A suspected Naga outfit slapped demand notes among people on the Assam side of the Nagaland border in Jorhat district, reigniting tension along the sensitive inter-state border areas.
Locals said four armed men swopped down at a place near Hoolungooree Tea Estate in Mariani last evening and slapped the demand notes, which ranged from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000.
�At least sixteen people, mostly cultivators, got the notes. They have been asked to pay the amount by this month end or face dire consequences,� Tileshwar Orang, a local said.
The demand notes bore the name of NSCN/GRPN (Reformation).
Jorhat Superintendent of Police Prasanta Bhuyan said a team from Jorhat administration held a meeting with the village council of the adjacent Naga village on the other side of the border. �They have assured to nab the culprits. In fact, we were informed that two of the four persons who distributed the notes have been caught by the Naga village people,� Bhuyan told The Assam Tribune over phone.
�Patrolling has been intensified in the sensitive areas,� he added.
Later in the evening, it was reported that two Assamese villagers � Benu Orang and Joydhan Mirdha � were assaulted by Naga miscreants along the border. Benu has been rushed to Jorhat Medical College & Hospital.
Mariani MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi, who visited Hoolungooree Tea Estate this morning and interacted with the locals, described the incident as unfortunate.
�We want peaceful existence. The case over the inter-state border dispute is in the Supreme Court. We hope it is resolved at the earliest. The people on both sides of the border have been living in harmony since ages. Such incidents of violence are unfortunate. I am ashamed,� Kurmi told this newspaper.
He also demanded the government to expedite the proposal to set up more outposts along the inter-state border.