HT Correspondent
MARGHERITA, Aug 30: Over 20 indigenous tribal organisations from the Margherita sub-division have been holding a sit-in demonstration at North Margherita Rangamancha from August 29 to 31, demanding justice for Gamrin Maket, a class 10 student from St Paul School, 4th Mile, Udaipur, who was brutally murdered and later hanged at the hostel verandah on August 1.
The sit-in demonstration was organised by the Singpho National Council and the All Singpho Students Union, in collaboration with several other organisations, including the All Assam Sonowal Kachari Students Union, All Assam Mech Kachari Students Union, All Rabha Students Union, All Assam Tangsa Students Union, All Assam Tribal Sangha Margherita Regional Committee, Satra Mukti Sangram Samity, All Assam Man Tai Speaking Students Union, Tirap Autonomous District Council Demand Committee, Pan Singpho Students Union, Asomiya Yuba Mancha, Margherita Regional Students Union, All Tai Ahom Students Union, and Tai Ahom Yuba Parishad Asom Margherita Sub-Divisional Committee. More than 300 people gathered at North Margherita Rangamancha to seek justice for Gamrin Maket.
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Jawong Gam Gudung, general secretary of the Pan Singpho Students Union Central Committee, expressed his deep sorrow over the incident, stating that it is tragic that an indigenous and meritorious Singpho student, Gamrin Maket, who was studying in class 10 at St Paul School, 4th Mile, Udaipur, under the 83rd Margherita constituency of Tinsukia district, was found hanging at the hostel verandah on August 1, just one day after his parents had left him at the hostel on July 31.
Gudung asserted that Gamrin Maket’s death was a premeditated murder and demanded an impartial CBI inquiry into the case, as well as compensation of Rs 1 crore for the deceased’s family.
Sengram Lebram and Amio Ningda, the president and general secretary of the Singpho National Council, respectively, echoed Gudung’s sentiments. They stated that following the brutal murder of Gamrin Maket, the organisation has conducted a series of protests at various locations under the Margherita sub-division. On Friday, they submitted a memorandum to chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma through the Tinsukia district commissioner, demanding a high-level judicial inquiry led by a retired Guwahati High Court judge to ensure a fair investigation and punishment for the culprits under strict laws.
They also called for a forensic examination of the entire body, as they suspect the post-mortem report is flawed and may have been influenced by powerful individuals to weaken the case. Additionally, they demanded that all police officers in Assam be instructed to apply the relevant provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, as many cases of atrocities against tribal communities are often not registered due to the negligence of police officers, resulting in the deprivation of rights and justice for tribal people.
