Failure of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to quickly deploy troops in the affected districts in Assam has caused the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to formally write to the MoD citing relevant laws where the state administration can request commanders of army units deployed in their respective areas to send personnel in case of communal clashes. The army authorities, when contacted by the local authorities in Assam, awaited an MoD nod to intervene in view of precedents of use of the army in civilian situations unnecessarily. The four-day delay led to the escalation in violence with Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi blaming the MoD, and even the MHA, for sending in the paramilitary personnel late.

Aaliya Khan