Eleven hurt in Tinsukia blast, ULFA hand suspected

Staff Reporter

Guwahati, April 28: At least eleven persons, mostly from the Hindi-speaking community, were injured in a blast in the heart of Tinsukia town, hours after a grede attack at the residence of a tea garden owner in the district.

Police officials said a bomb kept in a dustbin went off at around 7.35 pm at Devi Pukhuri Pachali area of the town. It is suspected to have been an IED explosion.

The explosion took place near the shop of one Upendra Yadav.

Eleven persons were injured in the blast, three of them critically. They were rushed to nearby hospitals. Some of the injured were identified as Manoj Mahato, Suraj Ram, Subham Verma, Hemanta Gogoi, Guneswar Shah and Parag Chandra Borthakur.

Last night, a grede was lobbed at the gate of the residence of a tea garden owner at Guijan in the district. There was no casualty in the attack. Police have picked up a garden guard for interrogation.

Police said Podumoni tea garden owner Vivek Agarwal had received an extortion demand from the ULFA(I) last year, but he reportedly did not pay up.

The attack in the town this evening is seen as retaliation to the killing of a senior ULFA(I) cadre in the district yesterday.

 Security forces had gunned down ULFA’s self-styled sergeant major Rongmon Asom alias Mekuri, during a search operation at Talpathar village of Tinsukia district yesterday.