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                     Vol.3, No.1 [*] February 5, 1997
                     --------------------------------

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   Transmission and  distribution  of  AOL  was  suspended  following  a
   satellite communication  failure  on  December  16,  1997.  We deeply
   regret for the inconvenience  to  our  regular  readers.    With  the
   restoration  of  the service last week, we resume transmission of AOL
   with this issue.  - Mozz.
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1  PRE-POLL VIOLENCE CLAIMS 5 IN ASSAM		           [AT:5-FEB-98]
   -----------------------------------
   
   Pre-poll violence claimed five lives in  the  State  including  three
   state police  personnel  in  separate  incidents on February 4.  Four
   motorcycle-borne ULFA militants attacked the Borghola  outpost  under
   Abhayapuri  police  station  in  Bongaigaon district and killed three
   police  personnel  including  an  assistant  sub-inspector  and   two
   constables at  around  5  pm.  In another incident two NDFB militants
   were killed in an encounter with the Army in Nalbari district.    One
   7.62  mm Chinese rifle, one 9 mm pistol with six rounds of ammunition
   were recovered from the possession of the slain militants.

2  MAHANTA FIRM ON POLLS DESPITE ULFA THREAT		    [S:5-FEB-98]
   -----------------------------------------
  
   The  Chief  Minister, Mr P.K.Mahanta firmly stated that the elections
   will be held in spite of the 'ban' called by the ULFA.  Addressing  a
   press  conference  soon  after  the  election rally at the AGP office
   premises at Golaghat on February 4, Mr Mahanta said  that  since  the
   people  of  the  State  want  peace,  the government is determined to
   maintain law and order.
   
   While stating that the contest in the State will be  in  between  the
   AGP-led  alliance  and  the Congress, Mr Mahanta exhibited confidence
   when he said that the alliance will win ten seats.    When  asked  to
   comment on the irregularities of payments of salaries to the teachers
   and workers, Mr Mahanta said that since there is no definite strength
   of the State Government's employees confusion has set in.
   

3  EXTEND ARTICLE 370 TO ALL STATES:  FAROOQ		    [S:3-FEB-98]
   -----------------------------------------
   
   Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdulla  has  for  long  been
   known  as a strong votary of devolution of more powers to the States.
   All political parties and leaders of national standing have wooed him
   for support at one time or the other.  A strong ally  of  the  United
   Front today, Dr Farooq Abdulla is of the firm belief that Article 370
   be extended  all over the country to keep the nation united.  He also
   wants substantial funds to flow  from  the  Centre  to  the  backward
   regions  like  the  Northeast  and Jammu and Kashmir, as he expressed
   dismay that a thing called IM(DT) Act should  have  been  imposed  on
   Assam,  during an exclusive interview with an executive editor of The
   Sentinel in Guwahati on February 2.

4  ANUP CHETIA BEING MISTREATED, CLAIMS LAWYER	           [AT:5-FEB-98]
   -------------------------------------------
  
   A Bangladesh human rights lawyer told a Dhaka  court  on  February  4
   that  she  was  concerned that ULFA secretary general Anup Chetia and
   his two associates, Lakshmi Prasad Goswami  and  Babul  Sharma,  were
   being  subjected  to  mistreatment in police custody and denied legal
   aid in a Bangladesh jail.  Elina Aziz Khan, the commissions'  lawyer,
   also alleged that Chetia, who was being held under the Special Powers
   Act  allowing  detention  for  120  days without trial, was not being
   permitted to meet his lawyers.  A police spokesman told the court  on
   February   3  that  the  three  alleged  insurgents,  arrested  in  a
   residential district of Dhaka on December 21, were ill and physically
   incapable of standing in the dock.
   
   'We  will  file  a writ petition on February 8, both for stopping the
   extradition move as well as  compelling  the  prison  authorities  to
   arrange  proper  medical  attention  for the accused,' Ms Khan told a
   German News Agency, DPA.  She added that the human  rights  body  was
   approached   by  ULFA  chief  Aurobindo  Rajkhowa  to  provide  legal
   assistance to Chetia.  Rajkhowa, who lives  in  exile,  claimed  that
   Chetia had fled India to escape certain execution.
   

5  STATE WITNESSES 1.6 MILLION RISE IN VOTERS IN A YEAR    [AT:4-FEB-98]
   ----------------------------------------------------
   
   The  All  Assam Students' Union (AASU) general secretary, Mr Samujjal
   Bhattacharyya in a statement issued at Dhemaji on February 3 informed
   that as per the latest State electoral rolls  published  in  January,
   there is an increase of over 1.6 million voters in the State over the
   1996 rolls.   The percentage of increase was 13.3 within a year while
   the national average was only 2.5 percent for  the  same  period,  he
   said.   The  AASU  leader said that the unprecedented increase in the
   number of voters in Assam must be due to inclusion of names of  large
   number of foreign nationals who have infiltrated into the State.
   

6  ULFA MAN NABBED WITH ONE-MILLION DOLLAR BILL	           [AT:3-FEB-98]
   --------------------------------------------
   
   Plans of ULFA to acquire illegal arms worth Rs.40 million were dashed
   when Army troops nabbed Biman  Bora,  a  hard-core  ULFA  cadre  from
   Nagaon,  on  January  27  at Digboi with a one-million US Dollar bill
   (No.M1427230H) printed as 1988 H collectors series  by  the  American
   Bank Note  Company.   The currency bill is supported by a certificate
   of authenticity by the International Treasurer and  attested  by  the
   President of American Bank Note Company.
   
   The Army raid came at a time when the illegal purchase of the bill by
   a businessman from Makum and Tinsukia was in the final stages.  Biman
   Bora has  been  remanded  to  police  custody  at  Digboi.  A special
   investigating team from Guwahati is rushing to  Tinsukia  to  uncover
   the sinister deal involving such a large amount of foreign currency.

7  POLICE GRILL TELECOM OFFICIALS 			    [S:5-FEB-98]
   ------------------------------
  
   Police  in Guwahati are interrogating the Telecom Divisional Engineer
   Mr P.K.Sarkar, Technical Supervisor Dharmeswar Deka  and  an  unnamed
   employee of the Telecom Department in connection with the sensational
   discovery  on  the  night  of February 2 that suspected militants had
   been utilizing the facilities at the Pan  Bazaar  telephone  exchange
   for anti-national  activities.  Three unaccounted batteries connected
   to a sophisticated equipment and lose wires were discovered.
   
   A  sophisticated  'Remote-talk  T-P'  machine  has been seized by the
   police from  the  exchange  and  given  to  the  State  Radio  Police
   Organization to  submit  a report on its utility, etc.  Sources said,
   the machine seemed to be an imported  one  and  used  to  send  radio
   signals  abroad  or,  by connecting with the antenna meant for Bhutan
   with wires, maintain contact with militant hideouts at  Daipham,  the
   headquarters of the NDFB.

8  ULFA BANS POLL ACTIVITIES			           [AT:4-FEB-98]
   -------------------------
  
   The ULFA has imposed a 'ban' on all  poll  activities  like  election
   campaigns, meetings  etc.    by  the political parties in view of the
   failure of the parties to clarify their  stand  on  the  question  of
   sovereignty  of  Assam,  said  the  ULFA  publicity secretary Mitinga
   Daimary.  In a press release  in  Guwahati  on  February  3,  Daimary
   called  upon  the  local leaders and members of the political parties
   not to organize election meetings.  The ULFA also warned the national
   leaders of all-India parties against setting foot  in  'Assam's  land
   mass' for electioneering.
   

9  24-HOUR ELECTION CHANNEL INAUGURATED		          [PTI:3-FEB-98]
   ------------------------------------
  
   India's first 24-hour election news television channel, the Star News
   Channel'  was  launched  in  New  Delhi  on  February  3 by the Prime
   Minister I.K.Gujral with a strong plea to the electronic media to  be
   neutral  and refrain from projecting any personality or issues during
   coverage of political activities.  Nonstop programming and news every
   hour will begin at six a.m.  from February 5 after  an  initial  test
   transmission on  February 4.  The channel can be seen in 53 countries
   accounting for 63 percent of the world's population.

______________________________[Mozz-BG]_________________________________
Compiled from newspaper and agency reports for private circulation only.
      [S=Sentinel, AT=Assam Tribune, Agencies = UNI, PTI, PIB]
              http://www.cyberspace.org/~mozz/aol.html  
  http://www.cs.uccs.edu/~kalita/assam/news/news-from-assam-index.html
________________________________________________________________________