GUWAHATI: Unidentified arsonists entered a mosque in Assam ’s Baksa district late on Sunday and allegedly set fire to religious books, triggering an agitation in the area amid appeals for restraint from the administration.

The incident at Kalpani Jame Masjid in Salbari , part of the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Region and around 120km from Guwahati, came to light during prayers on Monday morning.

By the time Baksa SP Prateek Vijay Kumar reached the area with his team, members of the All Assam Minority Students’ Union and the All Bodo Minority Students’ Union were in the middle of a sit-in outside the mosque, demanding the arrest of those behind the arson.

“The BTC elections are due. Political parties will try to give this election a communal colour by trying to disrupt harmony,” said Minhajul Imran , member of the state minority students’ union.

The Salbari area has a mixed population of Hindus, Muslims and Christians.

Local residents alleged that the Kalpani mosque had been the target of miscreants since the final NRC was published

