“There was confusion and panic created in both States after a satellite television channel in Assam reported that Assamese-speaking people were being evicted from Shillong,” North East Students’ Organisation chairman Samuel Jyrwa told reporters here after a meeting with several other organisations from Assam and Meghalaya.
Trouble-mongers were to blame for spreading rumours and using the media to create panic among students and people in both States, he said.
Last week there was a scuffle at the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) in which four students were assaulted by miscreants inside the campus forcing the authorities to tighten security and assuring installation of CCTV cameras.
Yesterday, several migrant labourers at the construction sites of IIM and NIFT in New Shillong Township were pushed back to Assam after they failed to prove their identities and having no work permits issued by the authorities concerned here, Jyrwa said.
“The incidents were clubbed together and certain news channels from Assam interviewed the labourers and started giving communal colours to it,” the NESO chairman said.
Shillong Socio Cultural Assam Students’ Association (SSCASA) general secretary Krishna Kant Borah blamed trouble mongers for spreading rumours, creating panic among students. “We (students from Assam) are safe and secure and the reported matter showcased by the media (in Assam) are totally false,” he said.
NEHU Assam Students’ Association general secretary Rishikesh Rajkhowa urged the media to “first verify the news before releasing it”.
Meanwhile, the Meghalaya government has taken strong exception to the incident and a top level meeting was convened in which the matter was discussed at length seeking the Assam government’s support in tackling the situation. – PTI
Our Correspondent adds: The SSASA general secretary said today’s meeting has been able to dispel several speculations and rumours. “We have given live feeds to Assam-based channels and also the national media to say that people from Assam was absolutely safe here in Shillong,” Borah said.
On the other hand, KSU president Daniel Khyriem said that the media reports shown last night was not true. He added there was no tension in the city as was being shown in the news channels. He further said that such sensitive reports should be aired with more caution and professionalism.
Source: Assam Tribune
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