After the lynching of physician Dr Deben Dutta by the workers of Jorhat‘s Teok Tea Estate, the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I) has warned the tea tribes of Assam.
In a press statement issued by Paresh Asom (Baruah), the vice-president and commander-in-chief of ULFA-I, the militant outfit strongly condemned the incident and asked the tea tribes not to repeat such incidents of attack on indigenous people of the State.
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“The indigenous people of Assam consider the tea tribe brothers as an important part for centuries. The indigenous people of Assam give respect as ‘tea tribe’ in lieu of ‘Adivasi’.”
“However, some tea tribe people in Assam in search of social justice in various times have acted like barbarians towards the indigenous people,” Paresh Asom mentioned in the statement.
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Stating that in the last few years, the indigenous people have remained tense because of “such barbarian incidents”, the ULFA-I c-in-c stated that through such barbaric activities of middle age India, some of the tea tribe people have created terror in the social system of the indigenous people.
The outfit also mentioned about a few such incidents where indigenous Assamese people have been subjected to torture by tea tribes.
The statement said, “In an incident of recent past, in Pengri area of Rani Tea Estate, the owner and tea trader Mridul Kumar Bhattacharjee and his wife were murdered and thereafter their corps were cut into pieces and even consumed by the perpetrators and the same was condemned world-wide.”
The ULFA-I also strongly condemned the incident and urged the tea tribes not to repeat such incidents.
“However, again two indigenous doctors became scapegoat of the barbarian mentality of the tea tribe wherein Dr. Probin Borkotky was attacked and poisonous red ants were put on his body, brutally tortured and subsequently he suffered permanent disability,” it added.
In the statement the outfit said in Teok Tea Estate, 73-year-old physician Dr. Deben Dutta was mercilessly beaten up and attacked by sharp glasses leading to his death.
ULFA“We can’t keep patience anymore and therefore if such incidence again occurs, then we will go against the Indian Constitution & ULFA-I will give rigorous punishment to the convicted persons,” the ULFA c-in-c warned.
“The leadership of the tea tribe has failed totally to remove such ill culture and they have not done anything for the community. We think the organization leaders and political leaders of tea tribes have inspired the community to take law in their hands to get political mileage,” the outfit claimed.
The ULFA-I said if such incidents continue to happen, it will take necessary actions against the perpetrators.
