Kokrajhar, Dec. 11: As a student at Gauhati Medical College in the Eighties, Bharat Chandra Basumatary took the Hippocratic oath to save lives. But he ended up as an outcast in 1992 after being arrested on charges of triggering a bomb blast in the busy Paltan Bazar area of Assam?s capital city.
Basumatary has come a long way since then. He laid down arms last week along with his comrades in the disbanded Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT) and wants to start life anew. ?Yes, I am ready to resume my career as a doctor,? he says.
As many as 20 people were killed in the blast that made Basumatary infamous. He was arrested along with former BLT chairman Hagrama Basumatary ? then known as Thebla ? and legislator Pramila Rani Brahma.
Hoping to make a fresh beginning, he and 2,629 more BLT members formally surrendered on December 6, a day before the interim council for the Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD) was sworn in.
Ask him what the future could be like and he says: ?Everything depends on the BTAD administrators and the state government.?
An MBBS degree-holder from the 1991 batch, Basumatary was associated with the BLT ever since its inception, driven by a desire to do something for Bodo society.
Basumatary joined Gauhati Medical College in 1982 and graduated in 1991, but his heart lay elsewhere. ?Like most Bodo youths, I was determined to work for my community, to fight for Bodoland. I do not regret anything I did, neither joining the movement nor letting go of the opportunity to lead a lavish and respectful life like many in the medical profession,? he recalls.
The former militant leader?s medical registration was not cancelled, but he was debarred from practising after being booked under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act.
Basumatary was not trained to use weapons because he was more valuable to the BLT as a doctor. ?I provided medical aid to the members whenever required,? he says.
On the erstwhile BLT leadership managing the interim council, he says there is no reason why they cannot succeed. ?As they have the zeal, I believe they will deliver the goods.?