Militant Attack In Assam

The death toll in Tuesday night’s terror attacks by militants of the National Democratic Front of Boroland (Songbijit) on Adivasi villages and in retaliatory attacks by miscreants among the Adivasis in Assam’s Sonitpur, Kokrajhar, Chirang and Udalguri districts has gone up to 72.

Meanwhile, three Adivasi protesters died in police firing in Sonitpur district on Wednesday. Indefinite curfew has been clamped and Army troops have been deployed in affected areas to assist the civil administration and the Assam Police.

Army copters mounted surveillance as the situation escalated and triggered an exodus of several thousand people belonging to both the Bodos and the Adivasis.

Rajnath arrives

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who arrived here on Wednesday night, reviewed the situation following the NDFB (S) terror attacks and retaliatory violence in Assam.

The review meeting was attended by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Joel Oram, top officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Army, Assam Police, intelligence agencies, and central paramilitary forces.

The Chief Minister sought a probe by the National Investigation Agency and this was accepted by Mr. Rajnath Singh.

Mr. Singh said the Centre would send 55 additional companies to help the State government deal with the situation. Both Mr. Singh and Mr. Gogoi will visit the affected areas on Thursday.

Authorities said of the 72 killed in the violence — 40 died in Sonitpur district, 30 in Kokrajhar district and two in Chirang district; 67 of them were Adivasis and five Bodos. The victims included 21 women and 18 children. The bodies of most of the victims were still to be handed over to the family members.

Earlier in the day addressing a press conference, Mr. Gogoi termed the killing of innocent persons “most heinous, most cowardly and most barbaric.”

Ex gratia announced

PTI reports:

The Assam government announced an ex gratia of Rs. 5 lakh each to the next of kin of those killed in the militant carnage; Rs. 50,000 will be given to all those injured.