Tripura ethnic violence toll rises to 30

Tripura ethnic violence toll rises to 30
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

AGARTALA, MAY 21: In continued violence in Tripura banned NLFT rebels massacred at least 15 persons, including three children and five women and injured ten others last night in West district, official sources said today.

With this the toll in ethnic clashes in the state since Friday has risen to 30, the sources said.

The ultras raided a school in Baghbar village under Kalyanpur police station in West Tripura district, where people from neighbouring villages were sheltering, threw grenades and opened indiscriminate fire killing 15 people on the spot and injured ten, the sources said.

Fifteen people, including women and children, were killed and 13 injured in separate incidents in Teliamura and Kalyanpur police station areas of West Tripura district since Friday, they said.

Following the violence, indefinite curfew has been imposed and shoot-at-sight orders issued in the two police station areas of the district yesterday, they said.

Tripura state police, Tripura STE Rifles, CRPF and Assam Rifles were deployed in the areas, where 100 huts were gutted and at least 10,000 people rendered homeless, they said adding top police and district officials are camping in the areas.

Trouble erupted on Friday morning when United Bengali Liberation Front (UBLF) ultras hurled a bomb at a passenger jeep carrying tribals at Malakar basti killing seven persons.

As news of the incident spread a group of tribals, armed with lethal weapons, attacked a group of non-tribals at Chaumuhani bazar area. In the ensuing clash three non-tribals were killed, the sources added.

Three tribals, including a woman, were killed and five others, including two children, seriously injured in another incident on Friday night when a group of non-tribals attacked Gudaibari village, police said.

The attack was in retaliation to the killing of a woman by insurgents at neighbouring Maijbhandar village on Thursday, police said.

One person was injured and two others were kidnapped in the incident.

In yet another incident, two persons abducted by the NLFT on May 16 were killed and their bodies were found in Dhalai district on Friday.