Author: Special Correspondent
Publication: The Hindu
Date: November 1, 2008
URL: http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/thscrip/print.pl?file=2008110155451200.htm&date=2008/11/01/&prd=th&
Army sources in the eastern sector suspect
the involvement in Thursday's serial blasts in Assam of activists belonging
to an "Islamic jehadi" outfit that might have tied up with local
militant groups. This view is apparently shared by agencies investigating
the explosions.
The encounter between Army personnel and suspected
Harkat-ul Jihad-e- Islami (HuJI) militants, who had allegedly sneaked in from
Bangladesh with explosives in the Dhubri area of Lower Assam in the last week
of September, was an indication that "jehadi" groups were trying
to penetrate the region, the sources told The Hindu on Friday.
It also gives credence to the probability
of an "Islamic jehadi" outfit being behind Thursday's blasts.
Sophisticated firearms and ammunition were
found in the possession of the militants involved in the Dhubri encounter,
giving rise to suspicion that explosives and firearms are being smuggled in
from Bangladesh.
Dhubri and others areas in Lower Assam are
believed to be popular destinations for militants crossing in from Bangladesh.
The inter-sectarian riots earlier this month
between members of the Bodo community and immigrant Muslim settlers in Assam's
Udalgiri and Darrang districts in which about 40 persons were killed and thousands
displaced might also have a connection with Thursday's blasts, the sources
said.
An "Islamic jehadi" outfit could
have found an ally in one of the groups involved in the violence in its preparations
to carry out the pre-meditated strikes that were also directed at Kokrajhar,
where the Bodo population is considerable, the source felt.
Carrying out serial blasts required precision,
coordination and an effective network. The fact that the explosions that rocked
Assam occurred in different parts of the State within less than half-an-hour
indicated that they were the handiwork of a cohesive terrorist group with
a widespread network rather "than the locally based militant outfits"
even though the assistance of some of them may have been sought in the blasts,
the sources said.
West Bengal is not without its own security
concerns either.
Security agencies have, over the years, been
considering north Bengal - that shares a border with Bangladesh and links
the northeast with the rest of the country - as a "transit point"
for militants.
Of concern to the West Bengal government is
the links certain militant outfits with a presence in the region were having
with those based in the north-east as well as in Bangladesh. Security in the
region adjacent to a part of Nepal and southern Bhutan has been strengthened
since Thursday's blasts.
