A team of Central Bureau of Investigation has arrived in Guwahati to take over the probe into the October 30 serial blasts that rocked four places in Assam, killing 93 and injuring close to 550.
The banned United Liberation Front of Assom has only 100 cadres left in southern Assam, the Army has claimed. The statement comes in the wake of the surrender of 27 ULFA cadres at the Tamulpur Army base in Udalguri district of Assam. The Army claimed that the ULFA's 709 battalion, which has been very active in southern Assam, has become considerably weak in view of so many cadres surrendering.
While the BPF and the UPPL are considered rivals in the Bodo-dominated areas, there was no pre-poll alliance among other parties as well.
The militant group has a strong bastion in the forest areas along the border areas of Golaghat and Karbi Anglong district of Assam. It has recently spread its tentacles to the tea belt area of the Udalguri district of North Assam.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said all clauses of the Bodo Accord signed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Government last year will be implemented within two-and-a-half years.
The banned ULFA was formed on April 7, 1979, in Sivasagar district of Upper Assam.
Only 20 per cent of the nearly 50,000 licenced arms existing in Assam have been deposited so far with authorities in the run up to the three-phased Lok Sabha elections in the state.
The Assam government had received prior intelligence report of an attack by terrorists of National Democratic Front of Bodoland-Songbijit but it did not know about the target and spots, said a senior official on Saturday.
The flood situation affected nearly 26.5 lakh people across 28 districts.
At least 117 Electronic Voting Machines malfunctioned and were replaced during the first phase of assembly polls in 65 constituencies in Assam, where the two-phase election process started Monday.
Assam has suffered huge losses in terms of lives, property, cropped land, dwellings and infrastructure in three waves of flood that have hit the state so far this year. Last week's deluge wreaked havoc in Kamrup and Goalpara claiming 67 lives and leaving behind a trail of destruction.
Security forces in Assam arrested 26 tribal insurgents, including 18 belonging to the NDFB-S, accused of massacring Adivasi villagers on Monday.
Suspected militants from the outlawed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (Sangbijit) killed more two persons and injured three others in two separate incidents of shootouts on Saturday in Bodoland Territorial Autonomous District Council areas in Assam.
The militants accosted Prasanta Kumar, shot him, tortured him and then dumped his body at Tangla area.
The tripartite agreement was signed by Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, top leadership of the four factions of the NDFB, ABSU, Joint Secretary in the Home Ministry Satyendra Garg and Assam Chief Secretary Kumar Sanjay Krishna in presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
In a major breakthrough, security agencies on Monday arrested a total of 18 National Democratic Front of Bodoland- Songbijit terrorists, including the commanding officer of its 13th battalion Bikunas Narzary alias Birlangbai, from different places across Assam and a huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered.
Addressing a massive public rally to celebrate the signing of the accord on January 27 that is expected to bring lasting peace to the troubled state, Modi said now the time was to work together for peace and development of the North-East.
Normalcy is returning to the violence-affected districts of Baksa and Kokrajhar under Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts Council areas in Assam. The state government claims that there has been no incident in the last 48 hours as the security apparatus along with army is working relentlessly to restore peace.
Operations were on Friday intensified against NDFB-S militants along the border with Arunachal Pradesh even as the death toll in the massacre rose to 81.
The counting of votes for the assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry would be held on Thursday morning with trends expected early.
Apprehending trouble in the state especially in violence-affected Bodoland Territorial Autonomous District Council areas in the aftermath of declaration of results of election in the state on Friday, the Assam government has requested the army to be in stand by for quick deployment, if the need arises while helicopter surveillance is being continued in vulnerable areas of the violence-affected BTC areas and along India-Bhutan border.
An umbrella organization of several ethnic groups has decided to launch an agitation opposing the statehood demands raised by a number of ethnic groups in Assam. including Bodos, Karbis and Koch-Rajbongshis.
With the recovery of four more bodies today, the death toll mounted to 36 in Assam floods that affected about 10 lakh people in 13 districts and rendered majority of them homeless.
The death toll in Assam in the current flood rose to 30 on Wednesday with 14 bodies recovered from worst-affected Goalpara and Kamrup (rural) districts even as relief and rescue work continued round-the-clock.
Violence surged in Assam on Wednesday as the toll in the massacre of tribals by Bodo militants rose to 65 including 21 women and 18 children, sparking a retaliation in which Bodo homes and a police station were attacked leaving three persons dead allegedly in police firing.
This classification of districts is to be followed by states and union terrotories till a week post May 3, when the second phase of lockdown will end, for containment operations.
'The BJP's tie-ups with the Bodoland People's Front and the Asom Gana Parishad have incurred the wrath of local party leaders and workers ahead of next month's assembly elections.'
'The prime minister expressed concern and assured all possible help to the state,' CMO said.
"We did not vote for the BPF (Bodoland People's Front) candidate in Lok Sabha polls, that's why we were attacked," alleged 75-year-old Iman Ali.
Bodo tribals influence as many as 30 seats. No wonder, national parties are keen to forge alliances with Bodo groups.