The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on March 13 blamed alleged “Bangladeshi infiltration” for the recent unrest in parts of Meghalaya’s Garo Hills and said it would stand firmly with indigenous tribal communities in the region. Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad claimed the tension surrounding the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) election stemmed from attempts by infiltrators to contest polls meant exclusively for local tribals.
“The primary cause of this tension is the infiltration of Bangladeshis into the local tribal community, and their attempts to contest Garo Hills Autonomous District Council election,” Prasad said while addressing a press conference. Violence broke out earlier this week in Meghalaya’s West Garo Hills district after protests by sections of the Garo community over alleged attempts by non-Garo candidates to file nominations for the GHADC polls. Two people were killed when police opened fire during clashes at Chibinang early Tuesday.
The unrest quickly spread across parts of the region, including Tura, with reports of arson, assaults on civilians and large gatherings. Authorities imposed curfew and deployed the Army to prevent further escalation. Following the violence, the Meghalaya government postponed the GHADC elections that were scheduled for April 10.