INCIDENTS of violence rocked Assam’s Samaguri Assembly constituency where by-electionswill be held on November 13 with both the ruling BJP and the OppositionCongressallegingthat gunshots were fired targeting each other’s supporters over the last 24 hours, police said on Sunday. It was also alleged that threejournalistswhowenttocoverthe violence, whichhappened on Saturday, were manhandled by Congress supporters. ChiefMinister Himanta Biswa SarmaslammedtheCongressfor “resortingtoviolenceundercoverofdarkness” to intimidateBJP workers, stating that no one would be allowed to sabotage or undermine the democratic process. “We got reports that an incident of firing took place at Mari Puthikhaiti village in Samaguri.

 

BJP workers alleged that a shot was fired from the house of one Congress worker aiming at ruling party MLA Jitu Goswami’svehicle,”apoliceofficer said.Inthevehicle, Goswami andBJPleader SureshBorawere travelling, although no one had beeninjuredinthefiring,hesaid. “On the other hand, Congress workers alleged that the party’s formeranchalikpanchayatmember Ismail Hussain’s son Imam Uddin was shot at by BJP workers, injuring him in the leg,” the officer said. The injured victim, Uddin,wastakentoanearbyhospitalfortreatment,hesaid,adding that the claims and counterclaims are being verified. Over thenight,atleasthalfadozenvehicleswere smashedby supporters ofthe ruling and opposition parties at several places in the constituencywhentheyclashedwith each other, police said