Guwahati: Assam Congress leader, Mridul Islam, passed away on Wednesday succumbing to sickness induced by tear gas shells fired during a 'Raj Bhavan Chalo' march in Guwahati. He had been hospitalised shortly before his death.
Islam was an advocate by profession and co-coordinator of Assam Congress’ Kamrup Rural Digital Vahini.
The Congress condemned the incident and declared Islam as a martyr. The party lodged an FIR with the police alleging Islam had died due to excessive use of tear gas by the police.
“Today, a peaceful protest rally was organized in front of the Raj Bhavan by Assam Pradesh Congress Committee. However, the Assam Police, without any provocation, used an excessive amount of tear gas on the protesters,” the Congress alleged in the FIR.
The party further alleged that the “indiscriminate” and “excessive” use of tear gas caused respiratory conditions among everyone present in the vicinity, including elderly people and children.
The Congress said Islam was participating in the programme in a peaceful manner but the authorities “unwarrantedly” assaulted him “with brute force” leading to his injuries and death. The Congress demanded actions against the police personnel who were involved, alleging that they had violated human rights.
Further, the party demanded a “thorough and independent investigation” into the incident, appropriate legal action and compensation for the family of the deceased.
“We urge the authorities to register a case and take strong and immediate action to ensure that justice is delivered and to prevent such tragic incidents in the future,” the FIR further read.
Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah said as part of a nationwide programme, over 8,000 party workers took out a march to the Raj Bhavan to register a protest against the government’s “attempts” to shield industrialist Gautam Adani, “apathy towards Manipur” and the implementation of smart meters.
“The state government, unable to accept a democratic protest, resorted to tear-gassing the protestors which caused the death of advocate Islam,” Borah alleged.