Four Cachar Policemen Arrested Over Unauthorised Gambling Raid After Youth’s Death

Four policemen from Cachar have been arrested for allegedly conducting an unauthorised raid against gambling without informing their senior officers, an incident that later led to the death of a local youth and sparked widespread protests in Lakhipur.

The arrested policemen have been identified as Santosh Biswas, Kagai Rongmai, Sarbananda Doley and Suraj Borgoyari. They were arrested on 24 June following a departmental inquiry and produced before a court on 25 June, which remanded them to judicial custody.

According to police sources, the four personnel had carried out a raid against gambling at Lakhipur in Cachar on 15 June without informing senior officers or obtaining the required authorisation.

During the raid, a local youth identified as Mohit Kanu allegedly jumped into the Chiri River while trying to escape from the police and went missing. His body was recovered from the river the following day, on 16 June.

The recovery of the body triggered massive protests in Lakhipur. Angry residents and the family members of the deceased placed the body on the road and staged a blockade. Protesters also surrounded the local police outpost, demanding action against those responsible.

Following the unrest, the Cachar Superintendent of Police immediately suspended all four policemen involved in the raid and ordered a high-level departmental inquiry into the incident.

Police sources said the inquiry found that the raid had been conducted in violation of departmental rules, as no senior officers had been informed beforehand. Based on the findings, legal action was initiated against the four policemen, leading to their arrest.

The investigation into the incident is continuing.