Agartala, Aug 29: Hundreds of people on Thursday blocked National Highway 8 in protest against the police detention of five local youths in connection with the recent incident of vandalism and arson of minority houses and vehicle in West Tripura district.
The incident took place four days ago at Durganagar under the jurisdiction of the Ranirbazar police station, sparked by the recent communal violence in the area.
“We demand immediate release of the youths who were forcefully detained by police. They were taken to police custody last night for interrogation regarding the violence. They were innocent, nothing to do with the violence,” said a woman protester.
The unrest was triggered by the defacing of a Kail idol by unidentified miscreants which was discovered on the evening of August 25, leading to widespread arson that left dozens of houses and vehicles in ashes.
Senior police officials, including the Superintendent of Police (SP) for West Tripura district, Kiran Kumar, rushed to the scene but were unsuccessful in clearing the blockade.
The situation was further complicated by the fact that a prohibitory order under Section 163 of the BNS, 2023, was in effect, forbidding the gathering of more than four persons in Jirania subdivision.
Local MLA Sushanta Chowdhury intervened and appealed to the crowd to lift the blockade. Addressing the crowd, Chowdhury assured them that the police were merely performing their duties and urged the community to seek legal recourse to secure the release of the detained youths.
He also emphasized the importance of legal action against those responsible for defacing the Hindu goddess.
Following Chowdhury’s appeal, the protesters agreed to withdraw the blockade, allowing traffic to resume. However, the protestors then regrouped outside the Ranirbazar police station, demanding further action.
Read: Drug peddler from Meghalaya arrested in Assam’s Boko
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