Silchar, April 7: Chief minister Tarun Gogoi?s appeal for restraint appears to have had a sobering effect on the warring Hmars and Dimasas, but the air remained charged with tension as Cachar and the North Cachar Hills struggled to come to terms with last week?s ghastly massacre.
The feud between the two tribal groups began in February with the abduction of three senior members of the Dima Halam Daoga (DHD), which claims to represent the Dimasa community, by Naga and Hmar militants.
Haflong, the headquarters of North Cachar Hills district, today wore a deserted look with residents staying indoors for fear of being caught in the midst of another ethnic clash. No violence was reported in adjacent Cachar district throughout the day, but there was a hint of exaggeration in the administration?s description of the situation as ?calm?.
Militants of the Hmar People?s Conference (Democratic) had yesterday ambushed an army team at Dikokcherra in North Cachar Hills district, seriously injuring one of the security personnel.
The injured jawan, Naik P. Singh, was taken by helicopter to the nearest army hospital but he succumbed to his injuries soon after.
Army sources said the assailants, who numbered about 24, fled to nearby Meghalaya after the encounter. The militants, however, left behind three .12 bore rifles, a few rounds of AK-47 ammunition, tents and incriminating documents, including diaries.
In another incident, suspected Dimasa tribesmen torched some Hmar huts near Harangajao village in North Cachar Hills district.
Two tribal girls were reportedly killed in a clash in the same area, but the casualties have yet to be officially confirmed.
The previous night, a group of Dimasa youth had ransacked some compartments of the Silchar-bound Cachar Express near Mupa railway station.
At least 12 passengers sustained minor injuries in the incident. The youths were apparently on the lookout for Hmar tribesmen to avenge the massacre of 23 members of their community on Mastul Hill, part of the Bhuban mountain range in Dholai block of Cachar, on March 31.
Northeast Frontier Railway today suspended train services on the Guwahati-Silchar metre-gauge route for an indefinite period. Sources said the Cachar Express and Barak Valley Express had been cancelled for ?security reasons?.