The TLDR: This isn’t about Indian forces clashing with foreign troops in Ladakh or Punjab, but two sets of state police—who fired shots at one another on the border between Assam and Mizoram. We explain why two states are behaving like enemy nations in the Northeast. 

Researched by: Sara Varghese and Vagda Galhotra

What happened here?

On Monday, two sets of state police clashed along the border between the states—right between Lailapur in Assam and Vairengte in Mizoram. See map below:

Five members of the Assam force were killed and at least fifty others were injured. The scene looked something like this:

There are two versions of what happened.

Mizoram’s version: According to Mizoram home minister Lalchamliana, this is how it went down. First, 200 members of the Assam police descended in Vairengte on Monday morning. They then “forcibly crossed” a duty post manned by CRPF and “overran” another post manned by the Mizoram police—and damaged several vehicles travelling along the highway. When residents of Vairengte arrived to see what was happening, they were met with lathis and teargas by the Assam police—who then attacked the Mizoram police in the late afternoon, forcing them to defend themselves. To sum up: 

“The Assam police damaged some Mizoram-bound vehicles on the national highway and committed arson. They did not listen to our officials who tried to resolve the issue and lobbed tear gas shells and grenades and started firing at around 4.30 p.m… Mizoram police responded spontaneously by firing back at the Assam police. The aggression of the Assam police started the unfortunate development.”

Assam’s version: The state government’s version goes something like this:

• In “breach of existing agreements,” Mizoram began constructing a road on the border, destroying parts of the reserved forest area in Lailapur—which is in Assam. 
• The Mizoram government also set up an armed camp next to a “neutral” Central Reserve Police Force camp in the area.
• A team of Assam officials—including senior police officers—went to the area “to request the Mizoram side not to disturb the status quo.”
• Then this happened: “Sadly, however, they were surrounded and attacked by a mob of miscreants from the Mizoram side, which was visibly supported by the Mizoram Police”—who also fired tear gas on the Assamese officials.
• Then in the afternoon, “the Mizoram police opened fire on the Assam officials and civilians, who had by then gathered there… with automatic weapons including LMGs [light machine guns].”

Point to note: The rhetoric in the aftermath mirrored that of an international conflict. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tweeted: “I am deeply pained to inform that six [actually five] brave jawans of Assam Police have sacrificed their lives while defending constitutional boundary of our state at the Assam-Mizoram border.” He later added: “People have sacrificed their lives but the boundary has been protected which we will continue to do at any cost.” FYI: The Assam government is now planning to deploy three commando battalions in border districts to “strengthen security.” Yup, it’s that crazy. 

Another key point: The union government has long deployed the CRPF as “a neutral force” along the disputed stretch of the 164.6 km Assam-Mizoram border. So yeah, this is like an international jhagda. 

The political angle: What’s embarrassing for the government is that the Mizoram government belongs to its national NDA alliance, while the BJP rules Assam. Yet that has not stopped Mizo leaders from blaming the newly anointed CM Sarma—handpicked by the BJP leadership—for the escalation. Sarma in turn is making allegations about “civilians in battle fatigues and bulletproof vests” attacking “our policemen.”

So this isn’t something new...

No, the border dispute has been bubbling since 1994—when there was another armed confrontation between the two sides in Vairengte. That’s when the Home Ministry intervened to play peacemaker—and a border dispute was officially acknowledged. There have been sporadic conflicts since, but things heated up again in October when residents clashed at the border:

“At the heart of the matter was an ‘eviction drive’ carried out by Assam along a contested part of the border... The Mizoram government responded by deploying troops in areas which Assam claims is part of its territory. Residents from both states also blocked key highways, bringing all traffic to a halt for almost three weeks until the [union] government intervened to defuse tensions.”

New Delhi also had to station CRPF forces along the Lailapur-Vairengte highway to keep the peace. But tempers along the border have been fraying once again since June. 

Point to note: The latest conflict occurred barely 48 hours after a meeting of chief ministers of Northeast states with Home Minister Amit Shah on interstate border disputes. The government has now called a meeting of the Chief Secretaries and Directors General of Police of Assam and Mizoram on Wednesday to find a “peace formula.”

Explain this border dispute to me

Blame it on the Brits: Back in the ye olde days of colonialism, Mizoram was simply known as Lushai Hills. In 1832, the British annexed the Cachar kingdom (in present-day Assam). And in 1875, they drew a line (Inner Line Regulation) to demarcate Cachar plains from the Lushai Hills—in consultation with the Mizo tribal chiefs. Then in 1933, they drew the boundaries in the northeast again to demarcate boundaries based on cultural, linguistic and tribal differences—this time to separate Lushai Hills, Cachar, and the former princely state of Manipur. But this time, no one talked to the Mizos. Simply put, Mizoram accepts the 1875 border, and rejects the 1933 border—which is the one Assam recognises.

Fast forward to 1972: After Independence, there were only three states in the Northeast: Assam, Manipur and Tripura. Soon after the Indo-China war in 1962, the government was worried about Beijing’s territorial claims on the Northeast—and ethnic insurgency in the region. So it carved out a number of union territories out of Assam to recognise the aspirations of the various communities. It created Nagaland in 1963 and Meghalaya and Mizoram in 1972—based on the 1933 line, which of course the Mizos don’t accept. When Mizoram was finally granted statehood in 1987 as part of an accord, it first raised the issue of the disputed border—which remains unresolved until now. 

The heart of the problem: is a swathe of forest land that runs along the border between Lailapur (Assam) and Vairengte (Mizoram). This is part of an Inner Line Reserved Forest that stretches over 1,318 sq km. At present, 570 sq km of this forest is in Mizoram, while 748 sq km is in Cachar district of Assam. Mizoram claims ownership of the entire reserve forest. Assam disagrees. And that is also at the core of the current conflict. Assam CM Sarma claims that Mizoram is encroaching on the reserve forest to cultivate crops—and has vowed to seek the intervention of the Supreme Court:

"The dispute is not regarding land but the encroachment of reserved forests is the issue. We have no settlements in the forest areas and, if Mizoram can give evidence [of such settlements], we will immediately carry out an eviction."

He also said: “We do not want land, we only want that reserve forests should not be allowed for any state's settlement.”

Also, the greater Assam problem: Assam has border issues with a number of its neighbouring states—including Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh (formerly North East Frontier Agency) and Meghalaya. And here’s why:

“It is important to note that [most of] these states were hurriedly carved out of Assam without paying much attention to the tribal realities on the ground and because these freshly created state boundaries did not strictly conform to the ethnic boundaries of the region. Especially since there continue to be sizable populations of Mizos and Nagas in the Cachar Hills, making it possible for both Mizoram and Nagaland to claim these territories in Assam. The central government had transferred areas that were a part of Assam, thus creating reasons for potential tensions.”

A history of failure: In other words, just like the British, the Indian government drew arbitrary lines and called it a day. It did not create any mechanism for the resolution of border disputes, and mostly left it to the states to settle their differences. And attempts to set up boundary commissions have mostly failed since the states involved won’t accept their recommendations. 

The bottomline: Colonial and postcolonial governments in India have long treated the Northeast and its people as a “problem” to be managed—half-heartedly and only when things start to go very wrong. With China once again breathing down the neck of the Northeast states, let's hope New Delhi will make more of an effort to sort things out this time around.

Reading list

NewsLaundry has a detailed and clear report on what happened on the border. Indian Express reports on the fallout from the clash. Hindustan Times has a good piece on why borders are a heated issue in the Northeast. Lt General Shokin Chauhan in Financial Express explains the history of the border conflict between Assam and its neighbouring states.