KLO chief’s kin arrested

Sumitra and her son at Kokrajhar police station on Sunday. A Telegraph picture

Kokrajhar, Aug. 31 : The sister of Kamtapur Liberation Organisation chief Jibon Singh and his brother-in-law were arrested from Assam’s Kokrajhar district in the wee hours today following a joint raid by the army and police, fuelling hopes of getting vital leads on his whereabouts.

Sumitra Das and her husband Dhananjoy Barman, a “second lieutenant” of the outfit known for its close links with Ulfa, had been staying with their two-year old son at the Mauriagaon residence of Dalim Choudhury, the officer-in-charge of Kokrajhar police station, Haren Das, said.

Choudhury is a senior member of the All Koch Rajbongshi Students Union (Biswajit faction).

The couple are from Bolka Barobaisa of Jalpaiguri district in West Bengal, about 150km from here.

Acting on specific information, joint forces, comprising Kokrajhar police and troops of the 19 Madras Regiment were launching a search operation in Mauriagaon, an area adjoining Chakrashila Wildlife Sanctuary, since last night.

As the forces were closing in on the house, Barman ran out of the house and fired at them. He sustained bullet injuries in his stomach as the army returned the fire. Soon Sumitra was arrested from Choudhury’s house.

After almost simultaneous arrests around 4am, Barman was admitted to the first referral unit at Bongaigaon. Sumitra is being interrogated.

A 7.65mm pistol of Italian make, four bullets, two mobile phones, five SIM cards, including two Bangladeshi ones and Taka 100 were seized.

The OC said: “After Operation All Clear in Bhutan in 2003, they slipped into Bangladesh and had been staying there; recently they came back and took shelter in Dalim Choudhury’s house.”

Sumitra’s son is with her. She told journalists at Kokrajhar police station this morning that she and her husband had received arms training in Bangladesh where about 40 KLO members were staying. She did not disclose where the cadres were holed up.

“We are hopeful of eliciting crucial information from them, including the whereabouts of Jibon Singh,” an officer said. The KLO chief is also also said to be taking shelter in Bangladesh.