Guwahati, March 30 : Raking up the issue of “secret killings” of family members of ULFA insurgents in late 1990s, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Saturday alleged that the then NDA government at the Centre and the ruling AGP in the state had an “understanding” on the matter. “I have reason to believe the NDA government at the Centre and AGP in Assam had connived to have a secret understanding for the secret killings,” Gogoi told reporters here.
“Otherwise why the Central government failed to stop the killings. It is the Central government’s duty to stop killings and uphold the people right to life and property”, he said. “L K Advani was then the Home Minister. The Home Ministry must have had known of the killings and informed him. If his ministry did not inform him, then he (Advani) was inefficient as Home Minister,” the Chief Minister said.
Asked why he had appointed police officer G M Srivastav, accused of being involved in the ‘secret killings’ then, as the state Director General of Police, Gogoi said, he was “not indicted by the Saikia Enquiry Committee”. The murder of ULFA insurgents family members by unknown assailants was dubbed as ‘secret killings’ by the media.
On party giving tickets to tainted persons, Gogoi said, “we have not given ticket to murder case charge-sheeted persons. But they have given. I will not say the name of the party or the candidate, but one of them has fielded such a candidate.” The Chief Minister was responding to a query on why his party had given a ticket again to MP Mani Kummar Subba against whom there was a case in the Supreme Court regarding his “doubtful” Indian citizenship.
Gogoi also said, “let the Election Commission judge whether he can contest the elections”. Accusing the BJP and AGP of indulging in “money politics”, the Chief Minister said, “I have heard that the AGP has assured BJP (leader) Sudhangshu Mittal a Rajya Sabha seat. Sources have told me”.
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