A grave allegation of extortion has surfaced against leaders of the Veer Lachit Sena in Jorhat district of Assam. According to reports, the president of the organization’s Jorhat district committee, Aditya Paniphukan, and secretary Sujit Dutta, along with several associates, allegedly demanded ₹5 lakh from the management of City Cart, a prominent mall in Jorhat. Shockingly, it is claimed that the extortion demands were made by leveraging the names of local journalists.
The incident began on Wednesday when allegations of misconduct by a female employee were raised against the store manager of City Cart mall. Following this, members of Veer Lachit Sena reportedly entered the mall, physically assaulted the manager, and forced him to kneel in public as a form of humiliation. Subsequently, the police arrested the manager and sent him to judicial custody. However, within 24 hours, the mall authorities began receiving repeated threats from the organization’s leaders, warning that the premises would be shut down if their demands were not met. A CCTV footage showing the leaders demanding money has already gone viral.
In response, the Jorhat police have registered a case against Sujit Dutta, Adityasagar Paniphukan, and others under Sections 308(4), 351(2), and 3(5) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). According to police sources, the investigation is ongoing, and efforts are underway to gather more evidence.
Following the incident, the central committee of Veer Lachit Sena immediately removed Jorhat district president Aditya Sagar Paniphukan and secretary Sujit Dutta from their positions. In their place, Yadav Bora and Mrinal Dutta have been appointed as the acting president and secretary, respectively, of the Jorhat district committee.
This incident has sparked widespread outrage across Jorhat. Residents have raised questions about the inaction of the district administration and police. Many have alleged that the organization has been allowed to operate like a “parallel administration”. Notably, just a few days ago, members of Veer Lachit Sena had created a ruckus at the Jorhat Municipal Board office, but no stringent action was taken by the authorities at the time.
