Guwahati, Feb. 25: The mortar attack on the Indian Air Force base in Borjhar here on Sunday has sparked off a blame game between New Delhi and Dispur which has all but pushed the security threat into the background. A day after defence minister George Fernandes and the Eastern Air Command blamed Dispur for the attack, the latter returned the fire with equal gusto by holding the air force responsible for the security breach.
Besides seeking a detailed report on the incident from the Eastern Air Command, Fernandes said in Shillong yesterday that if needed, he would seek an explanation from the Assam government.
In a stinging riposte today, government spokesman Ripun Bora said Fernandes’ remarks were uncalled for. “Did Fernandes seek an explanation from the NDA government when Parliament was attacked in broad daylight? Instead of giving sweeping remarks, New Delhi and Dispur should jointly work out an effective mechanism to thwart such attacks,” Bora said.
Intelligence agencies and police, too, joined in the blame game by holding the air force responsible for the Sunday night attack.
A preliminary investigation claimed the air force had not taken any step to prevent people from settling closer to its base, which made it vulnerable to such assaults.
“According to rules, human settlement should be three km away from an IAF base. But to our surprise we found settlements within one km of the base. What’s more, the IAF has apparently done nothing to either stop the settlement from growing or acquiring the land from the security point of view,” a police source said.
“Even after the two mortar attacks in the city on October 27 and December 25, the IAF did not take any precautionary measure. This has made the base more vulnerable.”
Police sources claimed the IAF watchtower was found deserted on Sunday night, the day of the attack. “They don’t even have searchlights to illuminate the area for combing operations,” the source said. Poor lighting made the task of the policemen who had rushed to the spot even more difficult. “Visibility inside the air base was only 50 meters,” he said.
Fifty people have been rounded up by the police and CRPF in Borjhar and Palashbari.
“We have some clues, but it would be premature to disclose them. We are hoping for a breakthrough,” city SP H.C. Nath told The Telegraph today.
“We think the militants chose Gadhebari to fire the mortar as it has several escape routes. It only shows that the militants no longer have the capability to launch attacks inside the city,” he said.