Kokrajhar Police Recovers Huge Cache of Arms & Ammunition ahead of BTC Polls

Kokrajhar, March 18, 2020:

Kokrajhar Police have recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition along the Indo-Bhutan border ahead of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) election scheduled on April 4.

The Kokrajhar wing of Assam Police have geared up to root out any form of mishaps that can impact the upcoming elections. They have carried out a series of raids in several places and have seized arms in huge amount.

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Based on specific information, Kokrajhar Police, along with the Indian Army personnel, launched an operation in the Leopani Nala and Ultapani Nala along with Indo-Bhutan border.

"Police and Indian Army personnel have seized a huge cache and we are investigating the matter. We will certainly figure out as to which party the arms and ammunition belong to," said a Police person.

The joint operation was led by Kokrajhar Police, accompanied by Sub-Inspector Swmdwn Hazowary, Officer In-charge, Serfanguri Police Station, Assistant Sub-Inspector, Rajani Kt. Rabha, I/C Bishmuri PP, APRG team with Commando Bn. Staff (Camp: Serfanguri PS) and Major Vikas Sheoran with 12 Sikh LI Army, which was led by Sri Mukut Rabha, Additional Superintendent of Police (HQ) Kokrajhar.

The Joint Operation team began its search in the Indo-Bhutan border area and succeeded to recover a huge cache of arms and ammunition kept concealed under the ground near a tree at Fire Line 07, Ultapani Reserve Forest under camp Bishmuri PP.

The recovered items are - Two AK-47 (01 x Folded Butt and 01 x Fix Butt), one (M-79) Grenade Launcher, one .22 Rifle, eleven country-made rifles, one .22 Pistol, two 7.65 mm Pistol, one 9 mm Pistol , three country-made pistols, eleven AK-56 magazines, two M-16, one .22 (Rifle) magazine, two .22 pistol magazine, ten 9 mm magazines, six 7.65 mm magazines and four country-made magazines.

In addition to the above, the team also seized ammunition in huge quantity - nineteen 7.62 mm, 212 rounds of AK-56, 88 rounds of 5.56 mm, 41 rounds of 9 mm, 34 rounds of 7.65 mm, two .22 mm, seven fired cases, eleven country-made ammunition, two Country made Grenades.

Investigation is going on to nab miscreants after the recovery of the arms and ammunition in the border area on Tuesday evening. Kokrajhar Police have also seized a satellite phone, ten No. 36 grenades, six Chinese grenades, two country-made grenades, eight fuses (No. 36 Grenade), 34 electric detonators, two No. 2 Detonator, two Grenades for M-79.

Police is taking a follow-up action on recovery of these items. It may be mentioned here that another team recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition in the Council’s Udalguri district. The recovery was made on Tuesday in Bandarguri in Udalguri districts of Assam.

The local authorities had launched an operation based on secret information they had received about the presence of illegal arms and ammunition in the region. At the end of the operation, the security personnel had seized an AK-57 rifle along with magazines, 12 rounds of live bullets, a rocket launcher, 40 high-capacity grenades, and 111 detonators.

The local police, after making the recovery, stated that efforts are on to maintain peace and tranquility in the region in the lead-up to the polls on April 4.

This recovery has been made amid murmurs of violence and unrest in the Bodoland Territorial Areas District (BTAD) region in Assam in the lead-up to the ensuing polls. Moreover, there have been reports that threats made to influence voter behavior have been made on social media.

Decrying this, United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) leader Pramod Boro has alleged coercion in certain parts and demanded stringent action against certain groups, which are allegedly using muscle-power in a bid to influence the elections.

Weighing in on the rumours of election candidates distributing money to potential voters, Boro said, “We have heard that some people are distributing money in ambulances, and misleading people; threatening people. There are audio recordings distributed via WhatsApp that reveal people saying that there should be violence. Strong action should be taken against it.”

The UPPL leader also said that the Election commission must ensure that these activities aimed at causing unrest are stopped, and take immediate action against the culprits.

It may be mentioned here that the last date of filing nomination papers for the April 4 BTC election is March 18. Bodoland People's Front (BPF), UPPL, Gana Suraksha Party (GSP) and the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) have expressed that they would win a good number of seats.

This year's contestants include the current BTC Chief Hagrama Mohilary and his party's loyal and known candidates, former All Bodo Students Union (ABSU) leader who joined UPPL, leaders of the disbanded National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), Saoraigwra, Gobinda Basumatary, BR Feranga, Naba Sarania and his GSP candidates.

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