Assam police arrest 17 after a Bihu troupe is beaten during a Durgā immersion procession in Sribhumi
The dancers say attackers chanted "Jai Shri Ram"; the Bajrang Dal denies any link to the accused.
- Hindustan Times
Police in Assam's Sribhumi district have arrested 17 youths for allegedly assaulting a Bihu troupe during a Durgā Pūjā idol immersion procession, Hindustan Times reported on Monday. Sribhumi Sadar police station officer-in-charge Taranga Patowari said the incident took place on the evening of 23 October, when Club Hindustan took out a procession with its Durgā idol and had invited the troupe to perform.
Some young club members and other local youths allegedly attacked the performers, and seven dancers suffered serious injuries, some losing teeth, police said. The troupe of four women and seven men came from nearby villages.
An FIR was registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to attempt to murder, criminal intimidation, communal slurs and acts intended to disturb communal harmony. Thirteen accused were arrested on Saturday and granted bail, and four more identified through digital evidence were arrested on Monday morning, police said, adding that most of the accused had been drinking.
Police also said the club had no permission for the procession and its organisers may be questioned. The victims allege the attackers called themselves Bajrang Dal members and chanted "Jai Shri Ram", and one dancer asked, "aren't we Hindus?
We worship Ram as well." Bajrang Dal's Sribhumi secretary Mahesh Bhattacharjee told the paper the accused were not members and that the outfit opposes such use of its name.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma condemned the attack, calling Bihu "the soul of Assam", and directed the DGP to act. The All Assam Students' Union has announced protests across the State, and Congress State president Gaurav Gogoi has also condemned the attack.
Key data
17 arrested (13 on 24 Oct, granted bail; 4 on 26 Oct). 7 dancers seriously injured; troupe of 4 women and 7 men. Incident on 23 Oct 2026.
Why it matters
An attack on Assamese Hindu folk artists at a Durgā procession, allegedly by people invoking Śrī Rāma, cuts against the idea that the festival unites. How police and Sangh bodies respond in the Barak Valley will be watched closely across Assam.
GK: did you know?
Sribhumi district, officially renamed from Karimganj, was part of the old Sylhet district before Partition and borders Bangladesh's Sylhet Division and Tripura.
