Aasu martyrs' column, signboard defaced

GUWAHATI: Unidentified miscreants defaced the Assam Agitation martyr's column and the All Assam Students' Union (Aasu) office signboard at Basugaon in Chirang district under the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD), some 250 km from the capital city, on Sunday night, triggering massive outcry across the state.
The students' organisation, terming the 'act' as an attempt to create disturbance and derail the ongoing National Register of Citizens (NRC) update work in Assam, has demanded that the state government take stern action in the case.
On Monday morning, when the incident came to light, Aasu president Dipanka Kumar Nath and student leaders rushed to Basugaon and asked the police for a speedy investigation.
Aasu chief adviser Samujjal Bhattacharjee said, "It's an attempt to derail the NRC update process. It's highly condemnable and the state government must act swiftly to stop such criminal activities which can spark tension in the state. Aasu also urges all section of people to maintain calm and peace." The final NRC is slated to be released on July 30.
The student group alleged that this was a handiwork of a faction of people who were in support of illegal Bangladeshis. "Since Aasu is vehemently opposing the suspected inclusion of illegal immigrants in the NRC, they (illegal foreigners) are trying to demean our morale," added Aasu members.
Nath who went to Basugaon to assess the situation added, "These repetitive attempts to attack the Aasu units in the state have been pointing towards a deliberate attempt to create disturbance."
Police sources informed that miscreants had smeared the Aasu 'Swahid Bedi' (martyr's column), the office signboard with black coal tar. The inscription engraved on the headstone was also smeared with black paint.
A similar incident occurred in March 2017, when one Subodh Biswas, president of Nikhil Bharat Bengali Udbastu Samannay Samitee (NBBUSS) led hundreds and allegedly vandalized Aasu office at Silapathar in Dhemaji district.
The incident had sparked massive outcry in the state following which over 50 persons were arrested on charges of rioting. Biswas who fled after the incident was arrested later from an India-Bangladesh bordering village of North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal.