Guwahati, October 7: One person was killed and many others including security personnel were injured after a violent communal clash erupted in North Tripura's Kadamtala bordering Assam over Durga Puja donations. The deceased have been identified as Sultan Ahmed.

Kadamtala, an area inhabited by a mixed-population in the district, reportedly witnessed violence following an assault on a driver belonging to the Muslim community, who allegedly refused to pay a donation for a community Durga Puja carrying medical a patient to bordering Assam, collected by members of a local club on the road.

Following the refusal, an altercation ensued between the driver and the group, which led to the registration of a police complaint and subsequent arrest of one person.

As the news of Zia Ahmed’s alleged assault spread, members of the Muslim community in the area gathered outside the local police station to protest. Eyewitnesses claimed that some protesters vandalised businesses and shops owned by Hindu owners, prompting the police to resort to baton charging to disperse the crowd.

Later, people from the Hindu community in the area held a counter-protest and allegedly engaged in further vandalism, leading to another round of police action.

To prevent the situation from worsening, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Sajal Debnath imposed prohibitory orders effective from October 6 until October 9, restricting movement in the Kadamtala police station jurisdiction from 6 pm to 6 am. Emergency services were exempted from these curbs.

Despite the curfew, people turned up in large numbers at the Kadamtala market violating the curfew norms in the evening.

Several shops in the Kadamtala market were reportedly set on fire, resulting in significant property damage. In an effort to control the situation, police, Tripura State Rifles (TSR), and Central Armed forces were deployed.

The forces reportedly opened fire to manage the escalating violence, leading to the death of Ahmed and injuring two others. Apart from prohibitory orders, internet services too have been restricted in the Dharmanagar subdivision to prevent the spread of misinformation.

North Tripura Superintendent of Police Bhanupada Chakraborty described the incident as "painful" and confirmed that Section 163 of the BNS Act had been enforced to maintain law and order.

In response to the escalating violence, Additional Director General of Police G.S. Rao visited the area to assess the situation. “The situation is now much more under control. We have deployed over 300 personnel from the Border Security Force (BSF) and Tripura State Rifles (TSR), who are conducting flag marches. Everything is under control now,” he added.

The local Kadamtala Communist Party of India-Marxist, CPI(M), MLA Islamuddin, criticised the administration for its alleged failure to contain the violence. “The imposition of curfew had not restored calm as anticipated. Mobs had violated prohibitory orders, leading to further clashes,” he added.

According to officials, Chief Minister Saha has been closely monitoring the situation and instructed the police to take stringent action against those responsible for the violence. Additional forces have been deployed to maintain order and prevent further escalation. Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman also called for peace, appealing to both communities to refrain from violence.