Congress MLA held in Assam for ‘provocative comments’ remanded to police custody
The police had sought 10 days custody of the MLA, but following our arguments, the court decided to send him for two days of police remand,”
Congress MLA from Assam, Sherman Ali Ahmed, who was arrested on Saturday for ‘provocative statements’ in connection with last month’s violent eviction drive that claimed two lives was on Sunday remanded to two days police custody by a city court.
Ahmed, who was arrested by Panbazar police in Guwahati from the MLA’s hostel under Sections 153 and 153A of IPC for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language etc., was remanded to police custody by the court of chief judicial magistrate.
“The police had sought 10 days custody of the MLA, but following our arguments, the court decided to send him for two days of police remand,” a lawyer representing Ahmed told journalists outside the court.
Last week, the Congress MLA from Baghbar had justified the killing of 8 people in Darrang district, near the same place where the recent eviction drive took place, around four decades back at the height of the state-wide agitation against illegal infiltrators. Those killed are regarded as martyrs in Assam.
On Sunday, the Assam Congress legislature party (CLP) recommended disciplinary action against Ahmed for “repeatedly violating party discipline”. The party had earlier issued a show cause notice to the MLA for “damaging the party’s image” ahead of by-polls in the state and also for “giving communally sensitive comments with the intent to destroy social harmony”.
“I have received the recommendations of the CLP seeking disciplinary action against Ahmed. We will be meeting on Sunday evening to take a decision on that. In the meantime, we are also waiting for his reply to the show cause notice,” Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhupen Kumar Borah said.
Two people had died and nearly 20 others including 11 policemen were injured in the eviction drive carried out on September 23 at Dholpur-3 village in Darrang district. The district administration have evicted around 1200 families in the area who were residing on government land for decades in order to implement an ambitious agriculture project in the area.
