Shillong (Meghalaya): Meghalaya Lok Sabha MP Vincent H Pala on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that interstate boundary clashes have not just been on the rise of late, but have taken an aggressive turn under the newly sworn-in BJP government in Assam. Provocations and aggressive posturing at the interstate borders is perilous to healthy neighborly relations, Pala maintained.
“For reasons best known to the present BJP-led government of Assam, such conflicts have not only been on the rise but have also taken a much more aggressive turn,” Pala, a three-time Lok Sabha MP from Shillong, said in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Seeking the PM’s intervention for establishing cordial relations between the neighboring states, the former Union minister of state said, “I sincerely urge you to address this issue at the earliest. The progress of the region has long been fought for... and it would be a matter of great regret to let that wither away.” He said the recent clashes along the Assam-Mizoram border, which claimed six lives, have once again highlighted the vulnerability of peace and stability of the region.
The Meghalaya MP noted that barring Tripura and Manipur, all other states in the northeast have a long boundary dispute with Assam. It has also given rise to wrangle over land, forest resources, and ethnic clashes over the years, he added.
Read: Assam, Mizoram govt's urge officials to ensure safety of 'outsiders' in respective states
