Assam Police Seize 'Suspicious Devices' Following ULFA-I Bomb Threat

Sentinel Digital Desk

Published:15th Aug, 2024 at 5:56 PM

GUWAHATI: In response to the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent's (ULFA-I) claim of planting bombs at 19 locations in Assam, the state police carried out searches and discovered “suspicious items” at several sites.

Assam's Director General of Police, GP Singh, reported that the bomb disposal team successfully neutralized these devices. The devices contained circuits, batteries, and unidentified substances but no ignition mechanisms.

The items have now been sent for forensic analysis.

The searches were triggered by ULFA-I’s announcement of an “armed protest” on Independence Day, which was unsuccessful because of “technical problems.”

The banned group had published a list of targeted locations, including eight in Guwahati, along with photos of some of the bomb sites.

DGP GP Singh confirmed that suspicious items were found in Guwahati, Lakhimpur, Sivasagar, Nalbari, and Nagaon, and stated that investigations have begun.

Earlier, the banned militant group ULFA-I claimed on Independence Day that they had planted bombs in 19 locations across Assam.

However, they stated that the bombs didn't go off due to technical issues. Eight of these locations were in the state capital, Guwahati.

The group said they planned to set off the explosives during Independence Day celebrations as a way of protesting with violence.

However, "technical errors" stopped the bombs from going off as planned between 6 am and 12 noon.

ULFA-I also shared a list of the targeted locations and photos of some bomb sites, including one near the state secretariat in Dispur, Guwahati.

The group, which is demanding a "sovereign Assam," has been boycotting Independence Day celebrations.

The warning comes almost 20 years after a deadly bomb blast during an Independence Day parade in Dhemaji, Assam, in 2004. The remote-controlled explosion killed 18 people and injured many more.

In 2004, a bomb blast during an Independence Day parade at Dhemaji College in Assam killed at least 18 people and injured many more. The police said the bomb, placed near the college gate, was triggered remotely while teachers and children were passing through.