Bloodbath continues in N-E, 16 killed

IMPHAL/GUWAHATI, February 15: The North Eastern states continued to be awash with the blood spilled in pre-election violence as militants st...

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IMPHAL/GUWAHATI, February 15: The North Eastern states continued to be awash with the blood spilled in pre-election violence as militants struck again leaving as many as 16 dead a day ahead of the elections. The dead include seven CRPF jawans who were ambushed in Manipur and six ultras who were killed in an encounter with the Army in Assam.

The situation continued to be tense with additional para-military forces patrolling the strife-torn region. Additional Army columns have also been deployed in West Tripura following the killing of 31 people, including seven State Rifles Jawans in the state in one week in the run-up to the poll.

In the first incident of the day, seven CRPF jawans were killed and at least 23 others seriously injured while seven ballot boxes were snatched in different incidents in Manipur.

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Official sources said here that armed activists numbering over 50 attacked a convoy of CRPF personnel and a civil poll party carrying election materials at Wangkhem area in Imphal East district thisafternoon.

In the incident, at least seven CRPF jawans, one civilian driver and an underground activist were killed on the spot, about five km south-east of here, sources said adding that 17 CRPF personnel and three civilians were seriously injured.

Combined Army, paramilitary and police forces rushed to the spot and launched a massive combing operation but no arrest was made. One carbine and other materials were recovered from the underground activist killed, the sources said.

Sources said the CRPF and police personnel were carrying election materials for nearby Shandang Semba Maring village.

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Official reports from Churachandpur district said a minor girl was killed and three Kuki villagers injured when Army personnel opened fire at Saikot area in the district this afternoon. The cause of the firing was yet to be ascertained.

Sources said armed extremists also took away seven ballot boxes from Henglep area in the district. No arrest has so far been made in this connection.

In Assam six ULFAmilitants were killed and two others seriously injured in encounters with the Army. Defence sources said, four militants were killed when Army raided the ULFA hide-out in Bongaigaon district.

Two militants managed to escape while two AK-47 rifles, a 9 mm carbine, a pistol and large quantity of ammunition were recovered from the hide-out.

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In another encounter, two hard-core Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT) militants were killed near village Magurimari in Kamrup district. Three militants attacked the Army patrol party while they were passing the area and in the ensuing exchange of fire, two ultras were killed while the other managed to escape, sources said. An AK-47 rifle, a US carbine and a sten gun with 300 rounds of ammunition were recovered from the spot.

Meanwhile, three hard-core ULFA militants were today apprehended in Namrup, the police said here. A sten gun and several rounds of live ammunition were recovered.