ULFA (I): Third abductee possibly killed by army
HT Correspondent
SIVASAGAR, April 24: Mohini Mohan Gogoi and Alakesh Saikia, two of the three ONGC employees abducted by ULFA (I) on April 20 were rescued in an operation in Totokchingnyu, Mon district of Nagaland by Assam Rifles and Nagaland Police on late Friday night.
There has been no trace of the third employee Ritul Saikia yet. One AK-47 with a bullet mark on it was recovered indicating an exchange of fire between the abductors and pursuing army men along the route taken by the ULFA (I) insurgents.
Meanwhile, in a release sent to the media here, signed by self style Captain Rumel Axom of the ULFA (I), the outfit for the first time admitted abducting the three ONGC employees from Lakwa ONGC rig site with the help of NSCN cadres.
The release also said that the three employees Alakesh Saikia, Mohini Mohan Gogoi and Ritul Saikia were handed over to the villagers of Totokchingnyu village in Mon district in good health in the wake of a fierce exchange of fire a number of times between their cadres and army from 10 pm to 2:30 am.
The release said that to malign the image of the ULFA (I), the army resorted to deliberate gun fire in the place even after they handed over the three to the villagers. Under the circumstance, the release added that the fate of the third employee Ritul Saikia has become uncertain. He might have fallen victim to army bullets or may be kept in army custody.
ULFA (I), through the release threatened the ONGC, terming it as an outsider, of dire consequences for the whole incident.
Addressing a press meet at Simaluguri, Sivasagar superintendent of police Amitabh Sinha revealed that it was a well-planned operation by the ULFA (I) modus operandi of the ULFA (I) in the abduction.
ULFA(I) militant Abhijit Gogoi alias Aiseng Axom befriended one Biraj Chetia alias Biraj Axom Borchetia of Sivasagar through social media platform and paid Rs 20 thousand on April 16 to buy a motorcycle which was recovered by the police in an abandoned state on the night of the abduction.
Biraj Chetia bought the bicycle from Noor Ali at Rs 18 thousand the same day in the name of Abhijit Axom.
About the condition of the third abducted person the SP was silent.
Earlier, Assam Police in a press statement confirmed that the kidnapping was done by the ULFA (I) under command of SS Maj Ganesh Lahon alias Purna Lahon and his accomplices namely, Aidyaman Asom alias Moniram Borgohain and Pradip Gogoi alias Akon.
The police also arrested 14 (fourteen) numbers of linkmen and sympathisers of ULFA (I) who were helping the banned outfit directly or indirectly.
Meanwhile, DGP Assam Bhaskarjyoti Mahanta took to his official Twitter handle saying, “So far Security Forces have been able to rescue 2 of the total three victims from near the India-Myanmar border in Mon Dist., Nagaland. The rescued 2 are Alakesh Saikia and Mohini Mohan Gogoi. Efforts are going on to rescue the third victim.”