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Assam fit case for President�s rule: ex-IB official

By R Dutta choudhury

GUWAHATI, May 18 � The sequence of killing of innocents and breakdown of the constitutional machinery make Assam a fit case for imposition of President�s rule, observed prominent security analyst and former special director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), RV Ravi.

Talking to The Assam Tribune, Ravi said that the recent killings in the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts (BTAD) were not ethnic riots but orchestrated killings by armed gunmen. Such killings would have disastrous consequences on the State. On the one hand, such killings would increase the demands for division of the State, while on the other, such incidents would lead to a threat to the security of the State as the possibility of growth of Islamic militancy as a fallout of such killings cannot be ruled out, he added.

The former IB official said that it would have been a different issue if the State Government were fighting a war against armed militants to the best of its abilities. But on the contrary, wrong policies of the Government are encouraging militancy in Assam. It was a different issue when the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) was at its peak and the Government was fighting a battle to deal with the situation. But now some of those using illegal weapons are �engaged with the Government in some way or other.�

Ravi pointed out that some former militants, who are using illegal weapons, are now sharing power with the Congress Government in the State, while on the other hand, factions of militant outfits are engaged with the Government. The Government should have formulated a clear-cut policy on talks with the militants. Just before signing the ceasefire agreement with the Government in 2004, the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) launched a mayhem, killing a number of innocents. But the State Government, despite the activities of the outfit, persuaded the Centre to agree to sign the cease-fire with the outfit. Again in 2008, the NDFB was involved in the worst ever terror attack in the country, killing nearly a hundred people, but instead of calling off the peace talks, the State Government accepted the claim that there was a division in the ranks of the NDFB and the faction headed by Ranjan Daimary was involved in the killings. Now that Ranjan Daimary has signed a ceasefire agreement, the faction headed by IK Songbijit is involved in killing of innocents. The Government must make it clear whether it is talking to individuals or entities and the Government must ensure that the leaders of outfits manage to keep all their flock together to come for talks, he added.

The former IB official, giving another example of the breakdown of the constitutional machinery, said that those involved in killing of innocents are made immune to the criminal justice system, which is a dangerous trend for the society. He pointed out that most of those who were involved in killing of innocents were not brought to book and Assam has the lowest record of conviction of criminals. The killers are made to feel that they are immune to the justice system of the country, he pointed out.

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