Insurgency / Assam

GUWAHATI, March 16— At least six persons were killed and several dozens more were injured, 12 of them seriously, this afternoon when the banned ULFA detonated a powerful remote-controlled improvised explosive device (IED) at Bamunghopa, under Goalpara police station in lower Assam. The ULFA, observing its ‘Sainik Divas’ today, drew the blood of innocent civilians while targeting a CRPF van coming from Bangaigaon towards Guwahati. The civilians were passengers of a private bus (AMP 893) on its way to Baguwan from Goalpara. The blast was triggered at about 4 pm on National Highway-37 when the...

TEZPUR, March 13 — A top ULFA leader SS captain Kamal Gogoi alias Bablu Sharma alias Bhaiti Gogoi allias Nazrul Islam who was the personal body guard of the ULFA commander-in chief Paresh Baruah surrendered before Lt General Mohinder Singh, GOC 4 Corps here today in presence of Dr M Ariz Ahammed, Deputy Commissioner Sonitpur, Pradip Kumar, DIG, NR and Dr Lakshmi Goswami. Gogoi who joined the ULFA in October 1985 was trained in weapons communications and explosives at Myanmar, Bangladesh and Afghanistan and was the commander of 28 battalion of ULFA and presently was the camp commander of GHQ at...

UDALGURI, March 11 – The National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) should come for negotiations and should make public what it wants. If they want the welfare of the entire Bodo people, they should not delay in negotiations.” This was said by Hagrama Basumatary, chairman of Bodoland Liberation Tiger (BLT) at Udalguri courtfield Monday evening. He also questioned the validity of sovereign Boroland from Kokrajhar to Udalguri area only. Basumatary added that the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) would ensure peace and communal harmony and that development in the entire BTC area would be their...

SILCHAR, March 11 (NEPS): The NSCN-IM, alleged to be responsible for kidnapping of three Dima Halam Daoga (DHD) cadres reportedly released the abducted persons - Ajir Dimasa, Samil Dimasa and P Kapla. The abduction might be due to differences between the local cadres of the two outfits, intelligence sources said. The Naga outfit abducted the threesome on February 26 from Gayingpur, along the Cachar-Meghalaya border.

The abduction was quite surprising considering the understanding between the two outfits. One Daoraja Dimasa, a civilian, was also abducted along with the three DHD cadres. The...

NEW DELHI, March 10 — The Central government is not moved by the spurt of attacks unleashed by outlawed ULFA with Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani ruling out any possibility of talks in the near future with the outfit. The Deputy Prime Minister’s statement was in keeping with the unstated policy of the Central government to isolate the militant outfit before engaging them in talks. Advani was talking to newsmen at the Raising Day of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) here today.

The Central government is on the opinion that its two-pronged strategy of thrust on economic development...

DIBRUGARH, March 9 — As the last litres of petrol inside tank number 559 burned out this morning at the New Tank Farm of the Digboi Refinery complex, the alert has been relaxed, and evacuated families too have returned to their homes from the two makeshift camps in the township.

Locals in Digboi said they could still see some smoke coming out of the damaged 5000 kilolitre motor spirit tank this evening. However, refinery officials assured that the smoke is from the water and chemicals sprayed on hot metal. Suspected ULFA militants on Friday night fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the tank...

GUWAHATI, March 9— The recent spurt in violent activities by the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) is an attempt by the outfit to prove its existence, highly placed security sources said. Sources revealed that according to information available with the security forces, at least 200 youths from different parts of the State last year joined the ULFA and most of the youths had passed at least school leaving certificate examinations. The local level leaders conducted some kind of interview of the youths before they were recruited, which proved that the outfit has become selective in...

Guwahati, March 8: The banned Ulfa, which last night struck serially at several installations across the state, virtually hit for a six Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s robust offer to travel to Bhutan to hold talks with the outfit.

Talking to The Telegraph late this evening, Ulfa’s commander-in-chief Paresh Barua not only owned up to the attacks on oil installations in Digboi, Duliajan and Bongaigaon but also said such attacks would continue till the outfit’s conditions for talks were met.

Reacting to Gogoi’s recent offer — made in the Assembly on March 6 — to travel to Bhutan or...

GUWAHATI, March 8— Banned ULFA separatists today carried out a series of attacks setting on fire a 5000 KL petrol tank at the famous Digboi Refinery, blasting a gas pipeline nearby, attacking a police post and a commando barrack and firing at a Bihari settlement killing two persons and injuring six others, reports PTI. The two deaths occurred in Goalpara district where a police outpost was attacked. There was no casualty in the explosions in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts.

Self-styled Commander-in-Chief of ULFA Paresh Baruah rang up media houses in Guwahati this morning to claim...

GUWAHATI, March 6— The Chief Minister, Sri Tarun Gogoi today announced that he would be keen to visit any country to initiate dialogue with the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) if he is acceptable to both the Central Government and the militant outfit. Replying to the discussion on the cut motions on the supplementary demand for grant for the Police department, Sri Gogoi said in the State Assembly that the Mizoram Chief Minister went to foreign countries to meet the NSCN leaders as he is acceptable to both the Centre and the militant. “If I am acceptable to both the concerned parties, I...