Political firestorm over security failure as more bomb-like objects are found in Assam

On Friday, two more of these objects were found in Guwahati – one in the Satgaon area, which is near the Army cantonment, and the other in Last Gate, near the Secretariat and the Ministers’ Colony.

Assam DGP G P Singh said Friday that four cases were registered in Guwahati in connection with the four bomb-like objects found in the city. These cases will be investigated by the respective officers-in-charge, and an SIT headed by the Joint Commissioner of Guwahati Police and supervised by the Commissioner of Guwahati Police will coordinate and supervise the cases, the DGP said.

He also said that SITs have been set up in the other districts where such objects have been found – Lakhimpur, Sivasagar, Nalbari, and Nagaon.

Assam Police also announced a Rs 5-lakh reward for “credible information on persons involved in making, transporting, planning of these devices”.

“We will ensure that they will be taken to task. We will leave no stone unturned to ensure that peace continues to prevail in Assam and all those responsible for trying to destabilise Assam are taken to task,” said DGP Singh.

However, Opposition leaders questioned how ULFA(I) was able to plant these objects in different parts of the state, and called it a failure of the state’s Home Department, the police and the security establishment. CM Sarma is also Assam’s Home Minister.

Independent MLA and Raijor Dol leader Akhil Gogoi said: “It is only because of the ULFA’s mercy that these bombs did not explode. But it became clear that any terrorist organisation can place bombs in Assam and take people’s lives… The Assam government says with arrogance that the BJP has ended all insurgency in Assam… But this happened on the day in which there is the highest security.” He also called for Sarma’s resignation.

Union ministers and BJP leaders have said in their visits to Northeastern that the BJP governments there have brought peace to the region and minimised insurgency.

Assam Congress Chief Bhupen Borah said, “I request Himanta Biswa Sarma to not try and distance himself from his actual duty by talking about things like ‘flood jihad’ and ‘love jihad’, and to stand by the BJP government’s commitment to work out a political resolution (with the ULFA(I)) and resign,” he said.

Independent Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Bhuyan and Asom Jatiya Parishad chief Lurinjyoti Gogoi also demanded Sarma’s resignation.