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                         Vol.4, No.51 [*] August 9, 1999
                         -------------------------------

               No one wants the truth if it is inconvenient.
                              - Arthur Miller
   -------------------------------------------------------------------

1  CHIEF MINISTER FORMALLY DECLARES ARREST OF ISI AGENTS  [S:9-AUG-99]
   -----------------------------------------------------
   GUWAHATI:  After a week of the reported arrest of four persons from
   a  hotel  in  Guwahati,  the  Assam  Chief  Minister Prafulla Kumar
   Mahanta formally confirmed that the arrested were top  ISI  agents,
   putting  at  rest  the  reported attempts of the police to keep the
   matter in wraps.
   
   In  a press conference at the Assam Police headquarters in Guwahati
   on August  8,  Mr  Mahanta  said  two  were  officers  of  the  ISI
   identified  as  Md  Farih Ulah Hussaini and Md Mohraj, both hailing
   from Pakistan, and the other two  were  top  functionaries  of  the
   Pakistan-backed  Harkat-ul-Mujahideen,  identified as Maulana Hafiz
   Mohammad Akram Mallik hailing from Jammu and Kashmir and Qari Salim
   Ahmad from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh.
   
   Elated at the major breakthrough achieved by the police, Mr Mahanta
   said  that the timely arrests have averted a major disaster, as the
   ISI agents were planning to launch a jehad to `liberate' Assam  and
   establish   an   Islamic   country,  besides  creating  large-scale
   disturbances in league with the banned ULFA.
   
   Director  General  of  Police  P.V.Sumant  said   that   based   on
   disclosures  during  interrogation,  police  arrested  27 hard-core
   militants   of   various   outfits    like    Harkat-ul-Mujahideen,
   Laskar-e-Toiba  and  Harkat-ul-Jehad from different parts of Assam.
   The four agents had arrived Dhaka from Karachi in the third week of
   July, and had crossed over to the State through Karimganj.
   
   A  video  recording  of  the  arrested   ISI   men   taken   during
   interrogation  had  them  saying  that they had come to Guwahati to
   destabilize the communication network and  launch  a  holy  war  to
   liberate the  State under its `Assam Mission'.  Confirming of close
   nexus with the ULFA, the duo confessed that the ULFA had given them
   a role to destabilize normal activities.
   
   Inspector  General  of  Police  (Special   Branch)   V.Ramachandran
   disclosed  that  among  the documents recovered was a communication
   frequency  graph  of  which  one  was  allotted  to  the  ULFA  for
   contacting the  ISI  top  brass.    `Following  the recovery of the
   documents, it has now been established that the ULFA was  following
   the dictates of the ISI', he said.  [See AOL of 2 and 6 Aug, 1999]
   
2  BOMB BLAST AT ULFA CADRE'S HOUSE, ONE INJURED          [S:9-AUG-99]
   ---------------------------------------------
   NALBARI:  A bomb was exploded in the  house  of  a  hard-core  ULFA
   cadre,  Nitul  alias Shamiran Sharma at Barjhar village, 16 km from
   Nalbari.  The mother of the activist, Sumitra Kalita,  was  injured
   and  a  major  part  of  the  house  was damaged as a result of the
   explosion.
   
   Army  and police officials rushed to the spot as soon as the matter
   was informed.  Three persons, Atul Kalita, Dilip  Rava  and  Subhas
   Kalita were  picked up for interrogation.  Police sources said that
   the bomb exploded due to carelessness of the ULFA activist.
   
   Meanwhile, suspected Bodo ultras on the night of August 7 triggered
   two bomb explosions at a market near Sandrup Jhankar in Bhutan.  No
   casualty was reported.  The bombs were planted  at  Hotel  Penjolin
   and a nearby grocery shop.
   
3  WOMAN ULFA CADRE NABBED BY ARMY NEAR ORANG             [S:9-AUG-99]
   ------------------------------------------
   GUWAHATI:   Troops  of  the 15 Dogra Regiment apprehended one woman
   ULFA cadre on August 8, identified as  Kabita  Chowdhury  near  the
   Orang tea  estate  in  Darrang  district.    She confessed that she
   joined the banned outfit way back in 1991.  She  was  later  handed
   over to  the police.  In a separate operation, two persons, Bharpur
   Gogoi of  Geleki  and  Paramananda  Barua  of  Namati  in  Sibsagar
   district were arrested for their alleged links with ULFA.
   
4  FIVE BCF CADRES AND ONE NDFB ULTRA HELD                [S:9-AUG-99]
   ---------------------------------------
   TEZPUR:  The troops of Dogra regiment stationed at Rowta in Darrang
   district apprehended five activists of Birsa Commando  Force  (BCF)
   --  Chakra  Gour, Dhiren Gour, Jagadish Gour, Kutamal Gour and Prem
   Singh  Gour  --  and  recovered  arms  and  ammunition  from  their
   possession. 
   
   The recovered arms include three country-made pistols,  two  rifles
   and 15  rounds of cartridges.  They were later handed over to Rowta
   police.  At Uldalguri, Army picked up one NDFB ultra Giridhar  Nath
   Basumatary   from   Singigaon   and  recovered  some  incriminating
   documents from his possession.
   
5  INGTI'S KILLING MAY LEAD TO BACKLASH ON SULFA          [S:7-AUG-99]
   ---------------------------------------------
   GUWAHATI:   The  killing of ULFA rebel Babul Ingti, a member of the
   `volcano group' of the banned outfit in a police  encounter  (other
   reports  said  the  ultra  was  killed  by  SULFA activists) in the
   Birubari area of Guwahati on August 6 might lead to a  backlash  on
   the SULFA.    The  SULFA had allegedly helped the police in pinning
   down the slain rebel. 
   
   Babul Ingti was suspected to have been behind the  rocket-propelled
   attack at the Usha Court building in the city recently which houses
   several SULFA  leaders.    Later,  Ingti's  parents  were killed by
   unknown assailants on the very night of the attack on Usha Court.
   
6  TEA LEADER TO CONTEST JORHAT SEAT                      [S:9-AUG-99]
   ---------------------------------
   JORHAT:  The  Labour Party has decided to field a leader of the tea
   labourers from Sonari for Jorhat constituency in  the  ensuing  Lok
   Sabha  polls.  With  the fielding of Labour Party candidate in this
   constituency, which is dominated by the tea garden  labourers,  the
   Congress  is  likely  to suffer a setback as the tea labourers were
   traditional vote bank of the Congress. Meanwhile, the BJP  and  the
   AGP are trying their best to prevail over the so-called vote banks.
   
7  APCC CONDEMNS PETROL PRICE HIKE                        [S:8-AUG-99]
   -------------------------------
   GUWAHATI:  The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee strongly  condemned
   the  State  Government's move to hike local tax rates on petrol and
   diesel in the State and said, this  was  a  direct  attack  on  the
   people,  groaning  under  the  burden  of rise of the prices of all
   commodities, the flood situation and the nonpayment of salaries  to
   teachers and employees.  The APCC spokesman Ripun Bora alleged that
   the  Mahanta  Government has inflicted an additional debt burden of
   Rs.88.38 billion on the people.
   
8  DEPICT CORRECT MAP OF INDIA: PRESS COUNCIL             [S:8-AUG-99]
   ------------------------------------------
   GUWAHATI:  The Press Council of India  (PCI)  has  expressed  grave
   concern  over the growing instances of publication of maps of India
   depicting incorrect  boundaries  in  newspapers  either  with  news
   reports,  articles  or in the advertisements released by commercial
   establishment.  The PCI reminded that publication of incorrect maps
   of the country is punishable under criminal law.   It  appealed  to
   all to be vigilant on the matter.

______________________________[Mozz-BG]_________________________________
Compiled from newspaper and agency reports for private circulation only.
      [S=Sentinel, AT=Assam Tribune, Agencies = UNI, PTI, PIB]
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