Daimary confesses to serial explosions in Assam

GUWAHATI - Terror mastermind and National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) leader Ranjan Daimary Monday confessed that the Oct 30 serial explosions in Assam that killed 100 people and wounded around 800 were carried out under his express instructions.

The 50-year-old terrorist made this sensational revelation before police interrogators during intense grilling at the Assam Police Special Branch Headquarters here.

“I never thought the magnitude of the bombings would be so devastating. I regret and repent now for that horrific wave of bombings,” Daimary told police interrogators 48 hours after his arrest.

The NDFB chairman was arrested Saturday after he was handed over by Bangladesh to Indian Border Security Force (BSF) officials at the Dawki border post in Meghalaya.

Daimary was Sunday sent to 12 days in police remand by the chief judicial magistrate’s court in Guwahati.

“We triggered the blasts to make our presence felt and to show our strength to the central government,” Daimary said.

The NDFB leader said they never thought their plan of triggering nine near simultaneous explosions would materialise.

“It was because of inefficiency on the part of the police that we succeeded in our plans,” Daimary said.

Nine serial explosions rocked Assam Oct 30, 2008 - three each in Guwahati and Kokrajhar, two on Barpeta Road and one in Bongaigaon.

The planning for the serial explosions were hatched in Bangladesh in July 2008 and some trusted cadres were sent to all the blast sites to carry out a field study before executing the plan.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) that probed the serial bombings named Daimary and 18 other NDFB militants as the main accused in the bombings.