GUWAHATI: After the bomb blast at Guwahati near Sukreshwar Ghat and the Taliban style killing of five persons in Tinsukia – triggered by the United Liberation Front of Assam - Independent (ULFA-I) even though it has denied its hand in the second instance, it can be surely assumed that the banned militant outfit is sneaking into the state exploiting the topical issue of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
A retired IPS officer, talking to G Plus in anonymity said, “Rebel groups like ULFA (I) has always exploited the sentiments of the people of Assam and this is a great opportunity for them.” The officer had retired recently and through his career had worked aggressively in many counterinsurgency assignments.
According to the officer, the banned rebel group is reported to be recruiting many youths from Assam currently and somehow the youths are also getting misguided by the rebel group.
Recently, an All Assam Students Union (AASU) leader had joined the ULFA (I) to fight for Assam’s “freedom.” The student leader announced his decision and asked the youths of the state to join the “movement.” The youth in question is Pankaj Pratim Dutta who was the vice-president of the Dergaon unit of AASU in Golaghat district. He became untraceable on September 5 only to emerge as an ULFA militant on social media.
Similarly, there are many youths joining the rebel group in some districts of Assam. A source in the police said, “The recruitments are happening in districts like Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Sibsagar, Jorhat and the bordering areas of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
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Sources in Assam Rifles said that the Army has launched a massive counter-insurgency operation along the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. The Assam Rifles is keeping vigil on the porous Indo-Myanmar border. The source revealed that the rebel groups are operating from Myanmar, and on occasions, they sneak into Assam to carry out terror activities and thereafter, return to the jungles in Myanmar.
Meanwhile, pro-talks ULFA leader Mrinal Hazarika was arrested by Panbazar police on 2nd November for his supposedly provocative and inflammatory comments with regard to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
