Tripura rebels set ablaze 65 huts in 3 villages

GUWAHATI, Jan 7: Six people, including three securitymen and three ultras, were killed and another injured in separate incidents in Assam yesterday, reports PTI.

A lance naik of Assam police task force was shot dead by extremists in Balamgar Bazar area in lower Assam.

Two other policemen, who later went to investigate the killing were ambushed on a bridge in the area ultras blasted a bomb killing them on the spot.

Two hardcore NSCN militants were shot dead in an encounter with the police at Bhuban hill in South Assam's Cachar district.

In another encounter between suspected Bodo rebels and police at Batabol in lower Assam's Bongaigon district one ultra was killed.

A report from Agartala adds: 65 huts of 38 tribal families were set ablaze by the insurgents of banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) in three villages of south Tripura district forcing about 50 people to take shelter elsewhere, police said today.

The ultras armed with sophisticated weapons raided Kashi Chandra Para, Rambhaktapara and Bhaktamohan Maluumpara and set ablaze 65 houses yesterday, police said adding the ultras also opened fire to scare the villages and threatened of dire consequences if they tried to resist.

Earlier on January 5 last, the ultras of the same outfit set ablaze 10 huts in the area.

Meanwhile, the banned People's Libecation Army (PLA) today claimed the responsibility for yesterday's ambush on Assam rifles personnel in which seven jawans were killed and 10 injured at Pungdombam area near Imphal.

A PLA spokesman told PTI over phone that the outfit's women wing launched the attack by exploding two powerful bombs when the security personnel were passing through the area.