At least one person was killed and several others, including policemen, were injured in a clash between evicted people and security personnel in Paikan Reserve Forest in Assam's Goalpara district on Thursday, an official said.
Security deployment has been strengthened, and top police officers and district officials have rushed to the spot, which has been cordoned off.
Goalpara District Commissioner (DC) Prodip Timung said forest guards and police personnel were attacked by alleged encroachers with sticks, and stones were hurled at them when they had gone to cordon off a part of the Paikan reserve forest, where an eviction drive was carried out on Saturday.
The eviction drive to clear encroachment on around 135 hectares in the Paikan Reserve Forest of the Krishnai Range of the district had affected 1,080 families, and the evicted people were mostly Bengali-speaking Muslims.
"The forest department wanted to dig a channel to ensure that no attempt is made for future encroachment. It started yesterday and went off peacefully. But when the team reached this morning to resume the work, people in the area attacked them with stones and sticks," Timung said.
In a retaliatory action, the police had to fire to control the situation, in which one person was killed and two others were injured, the DC said.
Several policemen and forest personnel were injured in the incident of stone pelting, the DC said.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, reacting to the incident, said those involved in the attack on security personnel will be booked.
"If anyone attacks the police, they will have to face legal action," he said.
The chief minister said the eviction has already been completed there, and the administration will start plantation now to reclaim the forest area.
The DC said it is not clear why there was resistance now after the eviction drive had been completed peacefully just a few days back.
"We have to analyse the reason. People, who were evicted, and residents from other areas are among the attackers," Timung added.
Locals claimed that the mob torched the furniture of a government school in the area, but fire tenders rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control.
Leaders and members of students' and youth organisations gathered near Paikan as news of the incident spread, but they were not allowed to proceed to the spot.
Security forces baton-charged the crowd to disperse them with barricades erected about 2 kms from the area where the violence had erupted.
No entry beyond the barricade, except those authorised, was being allowed, with media persons barred from proceeding beyond the point.
An official source said additional forces have been deployed as the situation remained tense.
Top police and civil administration officials have reached the area, and a strict vigil was being maintained to ensure no further flare-ups.
The leader of a local student organisation claimed that a section of the evicted people were staying in the area under tarpaulin sheets as they had no place to move.
"These people were looking for alternative living arrangements and requested the administration for some more time to shift out. But the authorities were now trying to close the road that led to the area," he said.
"Today's incident was unfortunate, but one has to understand the plight of these people," he added.
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