Violent clash in Assam after discovering teen's mutilated body, 25 injured

Guwahati: A violent clash erupted in Assam's Silchar town following the recovery of a missing teenager's mutilated body, police said on Wednesday.

At least 25 people, including three journalists, five police officers, and a member of the Central Reserve Police Force, were injured.

The 19-year-old victim was reported missing on July 15 from the town's Rangirkhari area.

Her mutilated body was discovered by locals on Tuesday at a construction site in Dwarbond, some 30 km away from Silchar. Locals informed the police after which the body was taken for post-mortem.

Later in that night, over a thousand enraged locals blocked the road, demanding the handover of the victim's mortal remains.

“After the post-mortem at Silchar Medical College and Hospitals (SMCH), when we were transporting the body to the crematorium in under tight security, some protesters stopped the car in the Rangirkhari,” Cachar SP Numal Mahatta said on Wednesday.

He added that despite their assurances of conducting a thorough inquiry into the matter, the enraged mob unexpectedly attacked them.

The victim's family had claimed that the teenager suffered possible sexual assault, as well as an acid attack.

They also alleged that the police delayed the search for her and kept them waiting.

“If they had responded sooner, she may have been saved,” said the victim's father, Nriprendra Roy.

The mother of the deceased, Uma Roy, claimed that her daughter, who used to work at a shop in the town, had called her at around 9.30 p.m. on July 15 to say that she was on her way home.

"When I tried to contact her again, her phone was off. We started looking for her and kept calling. We filed a complaint the following day, but my daughter was untraceable," she added.

Several right-wing organizations have started protests against the crime and demanded capital punishment for the suspect.

With inputs from IANS