Agartala, August 24 (IANS): The Tripura government on Wednesday barred public meetings and rallies in Agartala and re-imposed prohibitory orders in state capital to ensure normalcy and peace, an official said. These measures come after Tuesday's ethnic clashes in which at least 24 persons were injured and 15 vehicles, including two-wheelers, were damaged. The mob also set fire to some shops and vehicles.
"The prohibitory order under Section 144 of the CrPC has been re-imposed in Agartala. All kinds of public meetings and rallies have been disallowed," police spokesman Uttam Bhowmik said. He said the situation was normal in the city, though personnel of the paramilitary forces, Tripura State Rifles and the police were deployed in large numbers across Agartala as a precautionary measure. A senior police official, insisting on anonymity, said all 74 police stations across the state have been put on alert and security personnel directed to remain vigilant.
At least 24 people, including five policemen, were injured, a few of them seriously, in Agartala after activists of a tribal party - Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) - attacked civilians, traders and vehicles indiscriminately without provocation on Tuesday.
The situation turned violent around noon on Tuesday as hundreds of tribals owing allegiance to the IPFT took out a rally and attacked passersby, including women. This triggered retaliation by people of other communities, turning the situation volatile on ethnic lines. Around 3,000 IPFT tribal activists and their supporters, including a large numbers of women, were left stranded here till early Wednesday in the wake of Tuesday's violence.
The state government has urged the people to maintain peace and not to fall prey to any rumours.
The IPFT has been agitating for the creation of a separate state, carved out by upgrading the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council area. The IPFT's demand was rejected by almost all political parties, including ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).
