Arrest me if it helps resolve row: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Sarma to Mizoram cops

GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who has been charged with attempt to murder in an FIR by the officer in-charge of Vairengte police station, invited Mizoram police to arrest him if it helped resolve the decades-old boundary dispute between the two states.
Sarma said, “I am very happy that an FIR has been filed against me. If Mizoram Police serve me a notice, then I will definitely go on a padaytra from Silchar to Vairengte police station and join the investigation. If my arrest is going to help resolve this border dispute, why not arrest me today? I will not go to seek interim bail from Gauhati High Court.”
On the other side of the hostile border, Mizoram chief secretary Lalnunmawia Chuango said that the FIR against Sarma is likely to be withdrawn as Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga did not approve of it.
“In fact, our chief minister did not really approve of mentioning the name of the Assam chief minister in the FIR. He suggested that we look into it,” Chuango said, adding that Mizoram would like to remove Sarma’s name from the FIR. He said he was unaware of the development when the criminal case was filed against Sarma.
After the border flare-up on July 26 in which six Assam policemen were shot dead by Mizoram police, a series of cases and counter cases were registered and summons issued by both sides to appear before police stations concerned — Dholai in Assam and Vairengte in Mizoram.
But Sarma asserted that the incident of July 26 when six Assam policemen were killed in firing from the Mizoram side needs to be investigated.
Sarma said, “We don’t want to file an FIR against anybody. But if somebody dies then there is a case which needs to be investigated. I have proposed that this case be investigated by a neutral central agency like the NIA and not by either Assam or Mizoram.”
Explaining the need for the investigation, he said, “The parents of the six Assam policemen can also file a case to know the truth. It is about six lives and not about Assam or Mizoram and the victims’ families have every right to know what happened on that fateful day.”
The Mizoram police FIR has also named six civil and police officers of the Assam government. The Mizoram government has sent a WT (wireless telephony) message to Assam chief secretary and DGP informing them that the six officials must appear before the investigating officer at Vairengte police station on Sunday, but none of them did.
Sarma said, “I will have to protect my officers. I will not accept the notice sent by Mizoram police. I will not allow my officers to be arrested or taken to Vairengte.”
Assam police had also sent notices to Mizoram’s lone Rajya Sabha MP K. Vanlalvena to appear before Dholai police station on Sunday. He, too, did not appear. Assam police have also sent summons to six Mizoram and civil administration officials to be present at Dholai police station for recording statements relating to the case registered under IPC, Arms Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.