My heart went out to the simple tribal girl when I read about the inhuman and
barbaric treatment meted out to her in public by some goondas in Assam.
However, when I read detailed reports of the incident, I concluded the
following :
1) Some Assamese tribals planned a rally in Guwahati to demand ST status. The
leaders of this movement forced many simple and innocent tribals to go to
Guwahati for the agitation.
2) Once in Guwahati, some members of the tribal organisation indulged in
mindless looting, violence and destruction. This infuriated the local people
who tried to take revenge by attacking the tribals.
There is no denying the fact that the barabaric action of some goondas cannot
be justified in the face of the gravest provocation. But the fact remains that
the immediate trigger for the goondas was the hooliganism of the tribals
themselves. Therefore, I feel that the so called tribal leaders who forced
simple and innocent young tribals to visit an unfamiliar big city and left them
to face the music all by themselves after incurring the wrath of the local
populace by their own irresponsible provocative acts are equally to blame. But
who has the courage to bell the cat?
Debashis
