Militants ambush Assam Rifles vehicle in Arunachal, 1 killed

GUWAHATI: An Assam Rifles jawan was killed while another was injured in an ambush carried out by suspected militants in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday.

Official sources said the attack was perpetrated near Hetlong village under Jairampur police station at around 9 am.

The state administration, as well as security forces, suspected the involvement of 30-35 militants of the Paresh Baruah faction of United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA Independent) and the Yung Aung faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-K) in the incident.

“The militants carried out the attack on a water tanker of the 19 Assam Rifles. It was travelling to a village to fetch water,” Changlang District Magistrate Devansh Yadav told New Indian Express.

He neither confirmed nor denied reports that the militants had triggered an IED blast prior to opening indiscriminate fire.

“We received reports that there was an explosion. However, we cannot confirm it until we receive the report of autopsy. But shots were fired. In all likelihood, death was caused by bullet injuries,” Yadav said.

Defence sources said the injured jawan was admitted to a government hospital in Changlang. He is likely to be airlifted to Assam. It was not immediately known how many personnel were travelling by the water tanker. It was not escorted by any other vehicle.

In May last year, suspected NSCN-K militants had carried out a similar attack on an Assam Rifles water tanker in Nagaland’s Mon district in which two personnel were killed and three others injured.