2 ULFA-I operatives held in Assam’s Tinsukia, arms recovered: Police

Assam police have apprehended two active members of the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I), a banned militant organization, in Tinsukia district. The arrests were made during a coordinated operation involving local police and central intelligence agencies in the Jagun Bazaar area.

The two arrested individuals, identified as Humenjyoti Baruah, 27, and Papu Moran, 30, hold the ranks of self-styled second lieutenants within ULFA-I. According to Tinsukia's Senior Superintendent of Police, Mayank Kumar, the militants had devised a plan to carry out indiscriminate firing and grenade attacks on civilians in Tinsukia town. The objective was to first open fire in a crowded area, followed by hurling grenades to incite panic.

“

They came with a plan to open fire on civilians in a populated area of Tinsukia town. After the firing, they would have exploded bombs in a dense public place.

Timely intelligence and swift action by the police and central agencies thwarted the planned attack. The duo had reportedly entered Assam from ULFA-I camps located in Myanmar, crossing through the Jairampur area of Arunachal Pradesh. During their apprehension, authorities seized two AK-56 rifles, 172 rounds of live ammunition, two hand grenades, backpacks, survival supplies, a medical kit, cash, and other logistical items.

Both Baruah and Moran have been active members of ULFA-I since 2018 and are implicated in several significant insurgency-related incidents, including attacks on the Jagun Commando Camp and the Kakopathar Army Camp, as well as kidnapping cases. Police stated that their current plan was considerably larger in scope than previous operations. A case has been registered against them under various stringent laws, including the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Arms Act, and the Explosive Substances Act. The investigation is ongoing while the accused remain in police custody. ULFA-I, under the leadership of Paresh Baruah, is the sole faction of the insurgent group that has refused peace talks with the central and Assam governments, continuing its operations from camps along the India-Myanmar border.

“

They were part of almost all the recent attacks conducted by ULFA-I in Assam and this time the plan was much bigger.