Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday (13 June) issued a shoot-at-sight order in Dhubri town to curb rising communal tensions.

Tensions escalated in the town, located about 290 km west of Guwahati, after a cow’s severed head was found in front of a Hanuman temple on 8 June, a day after Id-ul-Azha was observed, the Hindu reported.

“The matter was resolved as leaders from both communities met, but the head of another cow was placed at the same spot the very next day, escalating tension,” Sarma told reporters during his visit to Dhubri.

Sarma said he had ordered a shoot-at-sight directive in Dhubri in the event of any untoward situation, adding that the order would apply to all illegal activities, including stone-pelting.

Sarma also directed the immediate arrest of all known criminals in the district and said that Dhubri has long been targeted by fundamentalist elements from Bangladesh.

He added that central security forces had been deployed in the communally sensitive areas to maintain peace and order.

“38 arrested overnight in the Dhubri beef head incident,” Sarma posted on X on Saturday (14 June).

The Chief Minister revealed that posters promoting secession have appeared in parts of the district.

These posters are allegedly linked to a group called ‘Nabin Bangla’. Some were even pasted on Army infrastructure.

The posters allegedly called for a fight to make Dhubri a part of Bangladesh.

He also flagged an uptick in cattle smuggling activity from West Bengal, stating, “We will investigate who is behind this network.”

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