Probe Dimapur killings by CBI or NIA, says Assam CM

The Assam government has demanded a probe either by the CBI or the NIA following the recovery of nine bodies from near Dimapur in Nagaland earlier this month, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said Wednesday.

"Assam has already asked the central government to order a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or the National Investigation Agency (NIA)," Gogoi told media persons.

He said the situation has improved along the Assam-Nagaland border in Karbi Anglong district, which was tense for a few days after the bodies were found.

Nagaland Police discovered a mass grave and the nine bodies from Pachaspura area near Dimapur town on the night of Jan 3. All the victims were identified to be from Karbi Anglong, mainly from Bokajan subdivision.

A day later, suspected Naga militants fired indiscriminately at a village near Khatkhati, killing one civilian and injuring another.

Assam has intensified security along the Nagaland border and deployed 17 companies of security forces. Night curfew was imposed for a few days in Bokajan.

Areas along the Assam-Nagaland border were tense since the last week of December when militants from Karbi Peoples' Liberation Tigers (KPLT) attacked a Naga village, in which at least seven people - four civilians and three militants - were killed.

On Dec 27, over 50 houses were torched in clashes around Chokihola in the district.

Following these incidents, about 3,600 people took shelter in relief camps. However, people have started returning home and over 600 have already left the camps.

"Now there are close to 3,000 people in the camps and we hope to send them back to their homes soon," Gogoi said Wednesday.