Assam chief minister, health minister on ULFA hitlist

GUWAHATI - The central government has warned of possible attacks on Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma by a hit squad of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), officials Thursday said.

A police spokesperson said a central home ministry message received by the state chief secretary and the director general of police warned that the chief minister and the health minister were being targetted by the ULFA.

“As per the input, ULFA has plans to target Tarun Gogoi, Himanta Biswa Sarma and his brother Susanta Biswa Sarma. In view of the above, it is requested that the above input may kindly be immediately factored in while making security arrangements for Tarun Gogoi and others in order to avoid any untoward incident. Most, most urgent,” said the home ministry comminique, a copy made available to IANS.

Susanta Biswa Sarma, the younger brother of the health minister, is a deputy superintendent of police in Darrang district in northern Assam.

Security measures have been tightened in view of the home ministry alert.

“We have reviewed the security arrangement of the chief minister and the health minister. Both have been given a set of do’s and don’t’s besides enhancing their security cover,” a senior police official said.

The threat to the chief minister and the health minister comes even as state intelligence agencies warned of plans by the ULFA to stage serial bombings in Guwahati, besides carrying out kidnappings in the state.

“We have definite inputs about the terror designs of the ULFA to trigger bomb blasts and kidnap people,” Inspector General of Police Pallab Bhattacharya said.

Photographs of at least two of the suspected ULFA bombers who could have already entered the city were released by police.

The ULFA was lying low for the past nearly six months.

“We have intensified vigil and road checks in all entry and exit points to the city, besides deploying security personnel in civvies in vulnerable areas to prevent the ULFA bombers from carrying out attacks,” said Bibekananda Das, senior superintendent of police (in-charge) of Guwahati.

The ULFA is fighting for an independent homeland since 1979.

Interestingly, the entire top brass of the ULFA, barring its elusive commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah, is in jail.

The imprisoned leaders include chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa, deputy commander-in-chief Raju Baruah, self-styled foreign secretary Sasha Choudhury, finance secretary Chitrabon Hazarika, cultural secretary Pranati Deka, and ULFA political ideologue Bhimkanta Buragohain.