Assam-Arunachal Border Clash Leaves 18 Injured Over Land Dispute

Unidentified men from Arunachal Pradesh opened fire on Assamese villagers Monday morning at Mingmang Basti in the Dhemaji district of Assam. The violence erupted during a meeting intended to settle land encroachment allegations, escalating after an argument over the recording of a video. While reports on casualties varied, the highest estimate indicates 18 people were injured, with four to seven individuals in critical condition and transferred to the Assam Medical College and Hospital in Dibrugarh.

Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chief Minister of Assam, described the event as a localized incident and stated that the situation has been promptly brought under control. He deployed Assam Police reinforcements to the location and deputed Education Minister Ranoj Pegu, the Chief Secretary, and the Director General of Police to negotiate with counterparts in Arunachal Pradesh. The clash followed a separate incident in Arunachal Pradesh's Lower Siang district, where a Mising youth was found with a gunshot wound, further fueling friction between the Mising and Galo communities.

The incident occurs amid a long-standing boundary dispute involving 1,200 points of contention along the 804.1-km border. The Government of Assam recently claimed that Arunachal Pradesh has encroached upon over 16,000 hectares of land. While the Galo Students’ Union requested paramilitary deployment at Hime village to prevent further escalation, Sarma maintained that the tension has been defused and the matter is almost resolved.