Agartala, April 5: The dissident faction of the National Liberation Front of Tripura, led by Nayanbasi Jamatya, is continuing its low-key offensive though speculation is rife that its militants might soon surrender to the security forces.
A group of militants of the Nayanbasi faction last night abducted a Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawan from Tufaniamura area under Takarjala police station of Bishalgarh subdivision.
Despite combing operations by police and the TSR, the hostage remained untraced. A tribal civilian, suspected of involvement in the abduction, was arrested by police.
Police sources said Uttam Pal, a 32-year-old rifleman of the TSR 8th battalion posted at Nabashantiganj camp under Takarjala police station, had returned last night after completing road patrol. Having deposited his arms, he went to the house of his tribal friend, Samprai Debbarma, in nearby Tufaniamura village.
Sources said at 9.30 pm, a group of armed NLFT militants stormed Samprai Debbarma’s house and kidnapped Uttam Pal at gunpoint, taking him away into the jungles.
After information of the abduction reached Takarjala police station, a large posse of policemen and TSR jawans reached the spot and arrested Samprai Debbarma, an overground collaborator of the NLFT group.
In a separate incident, police yesterday recovered the body of tribal farmer Takhirai Debbarma from Bhati Maidan area under trouble-torn Champa Haor police station.
Sources said slain Takhirai Debbarma, known to be a CPM supporter, had gone to Champa Haor market on Thursday evening but did not return home. His body, bearing injury marks, was recovered by local tribals from the Bhati Maidan area. Sources said his throat had been slit, adding that NLFT militants active in the area had been responsible.
In another development, director-general of police Mathew John has announced rewards ranging from Rs 2,000 and Rs 7,000 each for officers and jawans of the police-SPO camp at Mathulungbari and policemen of Killa police station of south Tripura.
Police sources said the jawans of this camp had bravely fended off an attack by NLFT militants in the early hours yesterday, saving all the inmates of the camp and the arms. Sources said camp sentry Subol Debbarma had put up stiff resistance despite being injured in the initial burst of gunfire but was killed when the rebels used a rocket-propelled gun. This was the first time such a gun has been used by the militants.
The camp inmates, four of whom sustained serious injuries, had forced the militants to retreat by firing from their near-obsolete 303 rifles.
Sources said the family of the slain Subol Debbarma, a resident of Narayanbari village under Jirania police station, would be given compensation.
A hardcore NLFT militant, Satish Jamatya, was arrested by policemen and CRPF jawans during combing operations in areas around Mathulungbari camp under Killa police station. The rebel is being interrogated.