Insurgency / Assam

GUWAHATI, July 21: Worried by the recent Bhutan Government move to launch a full scale Army operation against the ultras, the leadership of the banned ULFA has geared up its security. The ULFA camps which are located at Deothang, Koipani, Sarbhang and Samdrup Jongkhar areas of Bhutan are being equipped with powerful landmines keeping in view a massive operation. The leadership of the rebel group is understood to have directed Pradyut Gohain to increase 'arsenal power' of the seven battalion located at Sukhni area. The self-styled Captain Gohain along with 40-odd soldiers are guarding the seven...

NEW DELHI, July 21: The Centre is willing to open a dialogue with the outlawed ULFA only if the outfit suspends all operations in the state. This was conveyed to a delegation of the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba-Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) officials here today. But what came as a surprise to the AJYCP members led by its president and general secretary, Dilip Patgiri and Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee was the offer by the MHA, to the students body, to take an initiative in mediating between the Union Government and the ULFA. The delegation had called on the MHA to...

DHAKA, July 21: A Dhaka court has begun hearing of a case against Anup Chetia, general secretary of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) for illegal possession of foreign currencies, reports PTI. Chetia and his two associates were produced in the designated Dhaka court today amidst tight security. If convicted the accused may face death sentence or rigorous imprisonment between two to 14 years. The prosecution lawyer Mohammad Jahangir told the court that investigation report, the chargesheet and subsequent deposition by government witnesses established the charges against the...

JORHAT, July 21: The court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) here today rejected the bail applications of the four Mohbandha Tea Estate employees, working under the Williamson Magor Group, including a manager and a doctor, who are accused of helping a deceased ULFA militant, one Ratul Dutta, both financially and medically. The court order stated, "as the investigation was in its initial stage, hence the bail pleas have been rejected so as to facilitate smooth conduct of investigation". The court added that "though the nature of the crime was serious, but the police was yet to substantiate...

GUWAHATI, July 21: At a time when the Centre is talking about to bring in revolution in the information technology, one of its important wing, the Army, has not only been opposing the expansion of cellular networking in the Northeastern states but have also asked to withdraw the pager services from the region. Expressing apprehension that militants may use these services, the 4 Corps Army Headquarters has asked the ministry concerned not to grant permission for the expansion of the cellular networks in the region, including Assam. This has left the cellular operators high and dry, even as...

Kheroni, July 20: Karbis and Biharis are fleeing Kheroni in Assam's Karbi Anglong district following ethnic violence, which claimed 23 lives in the past week. Member of Parliament Janayant Rongpi and legislator Holiram Terang went to the spot Friday to pacify the Karbis, who are in a minority. Superintendent of Police Anil Phukan, who has been camping here along with deputy Inspector-General of Police (central western range) Dilip Bora, said the situation was tense and there was mistrust between the two communities. The killing of six youths in Thesso Ranghing by Biharis, in the presence of...

GUWAHATI, July 20: The manager of a tea-estate, belonging to a major group, alongwith two doctors, have been arrested by the police at Jorhat in Upper Assam on Wednesday for allegedly extending medical and financial aid to a senior ULFA leader earlier this month. The three include the manager and medical officer of Moabund, a prestigious plantation, belonging to the Williamson and Magor Group. The three had allegedly provided assistance to Ratul Datta, a senior leader of the ULFA's Upper Assam wing, who was suffering from Malaria and had subsequently died last week. According to G P Singh, the...

JORHAT, July 20: The four Williamson Magor Group officials, who were remanded to judicial custody yesterday for links with the banned ULFA, were today interrogated by the police from 6 am to 4 pm. The quartet, including Mohbandha Tea Estate Manager Aswini Sarma and Gajen Gogoi and the two employees namely mechanic Haren Saikia and driver Gajen Bhuyan had allegedly provided help to an ULFA man, one Ratul Dutta who died of malaria last week. Ratul had arrived at the tea estate on July 13 after having contacted the disease at a camp of the outfit inside Nagaland The sub-divisional magistrate here...

CALCUTTA, July 20: Five suspected ULFA militants were arrested and several documents and more than Rs 4 lakh recovered from them here yesterday. Police said the ultras were held from a house of the posh Park Street area in Central Calcutta when they were planning some subversive activities. Besides documents and mobile phones, cash amount of Rs 4,61,900 were recovered from them. The arrested persons were Nagen Chaliha, Bitupon Deora, Sanjib Goswami, Diganta Phukan and Dhrubajyoti Gogoi. All five were remanded to police custody till August 3.

NEW DELHI, July 19: The Army is slowly readying for a major operation to dislodge the ULFA insurgents from their camps in Bhutan now that the kingdom's Parliament is speaking about forcing them out. Sources said the operation has to be "well thought out as it will be difficult to surprise the insurgents". More important, it will have to be a joint operation along with the Royal Bhutanese Army. "Patience is the key. We have to remember this is an operation in another country. A botched operation will be a major embarrassment," an official said. The terrain and the defensive positions of the...