Women reservation: Violence escalates in Nagaland; mob burn govt offices, vehicles
Guwahati: The ongoing protest against the reservation to women in urban local body elections in Nagaland turned violent on Thursday with angry protestors setting various offices on fire.
The state administration was forced to impose curfew in Kohima and Dimapur as Naga tribal bodies had set the deadline of Thursday 4 pm for Nagaland Chief Minister T R Zeliang to resign.
Security sources at Kohima said that protestors, who came out in large number, set fire to the Kohima Municipal Council office and the office of the Directorate of Transport during the day. A mob also set the Kohima Press Club on fire, burning and vandalising government property, the source added. Even deputy commissioner’s office was torched by the mob.
Pointing out that violence broke all across the city, security sources said that the Central paramilitary forces have been deployed at the New Secretariat building and some important installations.
Tension prevailed in Kohima since Thursday morning as thousands of protesters gathered at the old MLA Hostel road at the heart of Kohima carrying the bodies of the two people who were killed in police firing on Tuesday night in Dimapur. Police had allegedly opened fire to stop a mob from throwing stones at the house of the chief minister.
The protestors have been demanding resignation from the Chief Minister in the wake of the killing of two youths in the police firing.
The protestors backed by various tribal bodies accused the state government of breaching the agreement on postponing the urban local body elections and holding the polls on February 1. They also claimed that there was a deal to postpone the election by two months.
Security sources also claimed that they are facing shortage of security forces as violence has spread in two major towns of Nagaland, including some adjoining areas as well.
On Wednesday, elections to urban local bodies in 12 towns across the Nagaland were conducted amidst a shut-down called by tribal bodies opposing the polls.
