On Friday there was a violent incident in Assams Chirang district A mob attacked the Runikhata Range Office after a number of locals were arrested for illegally invading reserved forest land Several forest department employees were injured in the attack
This incident took place at a forest office near the Bhutan border An irate mob set fire to the office building and government vehicles The crowd dragged the office furniture out onto the road and burned it and also attempted to block the road by pelting it with stones
Tensions began on Thursday when a team from the Forest Department arrested several individuals on charges of illegally felling trees and clearing land The Sikhna Jahlao National Park is located in this region Later that night a crowd surrounded the departments office demanding the unconditional release of the arrested individuals however no violence occurred
The situation deteriorated on Friday morning when a mob armed with sticks stormed the office The protesters allege that forest personnel had assaulted them the previous day an incident in which two women were also injured In response locals demanded action against the forest personnel involved in the assault and raised slogans Meanwhile the local police and civil administration attempted to bring the situation under control
Senior police officials who arrived at the scene attempted to bring the situation under control The police advised the protesters to submit their complaints to the administration in writing The police official appealed to them to clear the road and allow the administration time to conduct an investigation He explicitly stated that damaging government property is not a solution to any problem
