Nagaon: Several hurt as masked gunmen open fire over land row in Kaliabor

Three people were injured when a group of armed men opened fire at No. 1 Borghuli in Kaliabor in Assam's Nagaon district around 12.30 am on Tuesday, Pratidin Time reported.

The injured have been identified as Abdul Hakim, Rafiqul Islam and Rustam Ali. They were taken to Tezpur Medical College and Hospital for treatment. The area falls under the Sullung police patrol post of Uluani police station.

Land dispute suspected

According to the initial police account, the attackers arrived at the spot in the middle of the night and fired at the people gathered there. Police suspect the shooting is linked to a dispute over a plot of land, and that the attackers may have been hired from outside the area. Officers who reached the site recovered two empty cartridges.

Victim's account

Rustam Ali, one of the injured, told the channel that his family had been building a house on land they consider theirs, but another party had been stopping them from using it. He said they had gone to the plot to take possession when the attack took place.

Ali said one bullet passed close to his eye and another struck his grandfather in the leg. He claimed there were about 25 or more men, all wearing black masks, carrying around five guns. He also alleged that the person who brought in the attackers was a relative. Police have not confirmed these claims.

Investigation on

No arrest had been reported at the time of writing. Police said they were questioning people in the area and examining the spot to identify the attackers and establish how the land dispute escalated into a shooting.

Firearm violence over land is not new to central Assam, where boundary and inheritance disputes over agricultural plots often end up in court or in clashes. The use of several guns by a masked group, however, makes this incident more serious than a typical neighbourhood quarrel, and residents of Kaliabor will be watching whether police are able to trace the weapons and those who supplied them.

Update (Nov 10, 12:30 pm)

Later reports give a higher count of injured. India Today NE, citing the complainants, said at least six people were hurt when the family of Ufaidul Islam went to take possession of the disputed plot and a group of 20 to 30 men, allegedly brought by the family of Shafiqul Islam, attacked them. Rustam Ali, who suffered a bullet injury, is being treated at Tezpur Medical College and Hospital. Others named as injured include Yusuf Ali, Ufaidul Islam, Abdul Barek, Atar Ali, Mofizul Islam and Rashidul Islam. Police from Sulung and Ulubari reached the spot and have begun an investigation. These are the complainants' allegations; police have not yet given an official account or confirmed the number injured.

Update (Nov 11): One arrested, firearm recovered

Police have arrested one accused, identified as Aizul, within 24 hours of the clash, India Today NE reported on Wednesday. The arrest was made by Sulung police led by Officer-in-Charge Amrit Pritam Das. In a separate operation late on Monday night, police recovered the firearm allegedly used in the shooting from the house of one Abdul Kalam at Borghuli.

Police said the dispute was between the families of Ufaidul Islam and Safiqul Islam, who belong to the same extended family and have long been at odds over ownership of a plot of land. At least seven people were injured, one of them with a bullet wound. Three people had earlier been detained for questioning.

Court decree behind the clash

The Sentinel reported on Wednesday that Ufaidul Islam's family says the case over the land had been pending in a Nagaon court for nearly 30 years, and that the family had recently won a decree in its favour. After the other family allegedly refused to hand over the plot, Ufaidul Islam's relatives began putting up a tin-roofed structure on it on Monday night to take possession, which is when the armed group arrived. The paper also put the number detained at three. These remain the complainants' account; police have not publicly confirmed the court order.

NEInsider will update this story when Nagaon police share details of arrests or the condition of the injured.