10 tea workers injured as estate owners open fire in Assam

Bijay Sankar Bora

Tribune News Service

Guwahati, December 13

At least 10 tea garden workers were injured, two of them seriously, when two owners opened indiscriminate fire on a protesting group of tea workers at a tea estate in Golaghat district of Assam on Wednesday.

Police informed that owners of Bogidhola Tea Estate at Numaligarh in Golaghat district opened fire at a group of tea workers who were holding protests demanding payment of pending wages and annual bonus.

Ten workers were injured and were rushed to a nearby hospital.

Condition of two of the injured was stated to be serious.

Police have arrested the owners of the tea estate – Sudhir Roy and Samir Roy – following the incident and further investigation is on.

Police said the owners of the tea estate have two licensed guns – one SBBL gun and a shot gun.

The police said the protest held by the tea workers was gradually turning violent with workers starting to set fire to trees within the tea plantation besides laying siege to the office of the tea garden.

On the other hand, the workers alleged that the tea garden owners were not paying heed to their sustained demand for payment of pending wages and accused the state-level tea worker’s unions of acting in the interests of owners.