Guwahati: Two people have been apprehended in the Cachar district of Assam for allegedly damaging the embankment of the Barak river, which ultimately led to a catastrophic flood situation in Silchar.
The arrested persons have been identified as Mithu Hussain Laskar and Kabul Khan.
Laskar was nabbed on July 2 while Khan was apprehended on the night of July 1 their arrest was confirmed by Ramandeep Kaur, Superintendent of Police in Cachar and she informed that the police were further investigating the matter.
Earlier on May 24, a police complaint was lodged by the Water Resources Department against unknown miscreants for breaking through the embankment at Bethukandi, some 3 kilometers from the town center, to allow rainwater from a marsh to pour into the Barak river.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had earlier stated that the flood was a man-made calamity and assured that the ones who are responsible for it will not be spared and will face harsh punishment.
The CM, on July 1, informed that six persons have been identified as the perpetrators of the embankment collapse that led to a deadly flood in Silchar town.
Kabul Khan apparently shot a video of the rupture, which the Chief Minister apparently showed to locals during a visit to the Cachar district embankment site. Sarma was seen asking people to identify the speakers in the video.
"The Bethukandi incident is a big lesson for us. The next time there is a flood, we have to post policemen at the embankment so that nobody can breach it. Regarding the Bethukandi breach, CID has been asked to register a case in Guwahati. Now the case for the Silchar flood shall be registered in Guwahati, people shall be interrogated in Guwahati and all investigations shall be done from Guwahati," said CM Himanta Biswa Sarma.
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