The virtual capital of Northeast India has turned into a city of protest and demonstrations on the aftermath of the serial blasts. The terror attack that struck Assam on October 30 morning snatched away the lives of over 80 people. The civil society and advocacy groups have already taken various agitational programs to condemn the incident that left nearly 400 people injured. If one organises public meetings, the other went on with candle light processions in the streets of Guwahati. If a section preferred for the street corner prayers, other went for comprehensive discussion on the issue of terrorism. The Journalists' Forum, Assam has organised a Citizen's Meet at Guwahati Press Club on Wednesday (Nov 5) at 2 pm to discuss about the aftermath of the terror attacks in India and probable plan of actions to raise voices against the heinous crime. In its invitation, the forum argues that 'India in general and Assam in particular have stepped in to a serious phase, where the people have been exposed to the threats of international terrorism'. Assam or Northeast is not stranger to terror attacks, but the recent series of explosions that took place in the state had shaken the psyche of the people. For the first time, they feel helpless and in-secured. Dances of death gripped the ambience and the citizens of Guwahati went on self imposing curfew for many hours. After the historic Assam agitation, one witnessed such a deserted Guwahati for the first time. Shops closed, no vehicles with crowd on the roads and unbelievable silence grabbed the ambience of the city. Shockingly, the explosions took place in the high security and crowded areas of Guwahati including the front of DC court, Kachari (where in fact two deputy commissioners of Kamrup district and Kamrup-Metro sit; and also adjacent to Chief Judicial Magistrate court, Guwahati). Similarly the location of Pan Bazar, where another bomb exploded is very near to Pan Bazar police station. This is also crowded market place. The third one is busy Ganeshguri area. This place is near to the high security Secretariat and Legislative Assembly building and also a market place. Three another blasts took place in Kokrajhar, two in Barpeta and one in Bongaigaon district in lower Assam. Significantly all the explosions took within 11.15 to 12.15 a.m. The police initially suspected the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) as the sole outfit behind the handiwork. But the banned armed group promptly denied its role in the explosions. Soon the security agency started fingering at foreign Islamist elements for the violence. The first suspect was put on the Bangladesh based Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI). Another thought of schooling was that HuJI planned and supplied the materials and the local ULFA cadres implemented the heinous acts. But the Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi went on arguing that the act was masterminded by none other than ULFA cadres. His cabinet colleague Himanta Bishwa Sarma also echoed his version. Sitting in the studio of Television channels, Sarma tried to analyze the situation like a social scientist though in vein. The Assam government spokesperson Sarma was assumedly afraid of pronouncing the words of HuJI. So the young minister tried his best to divert the attention from Islamist terrorists to the insurgent ULFA. But both Gogoi and Sarma later admitted that 'every act of terrorism perpetrated in the State has its link with Bangladesh'. Meanwhile, the member of All Assam students' Union and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad had burned and hanged the effigies of the Prime Minister and Home Minister of the country in public. Two general strikes (Bandhs) were also observed in the State against the act of violence. The first one bandh was called by BJP and its supporting organisations on November 1, which enjoyed spontaneous response from the common people. The second bandh, called by AASU on November 3, also received response in both Brahmaputra and Barak valleys of the state. Incidentally, the PM Dr Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi visited Assam during the BJP supported bandh. Paying visit to the locations and also attending the injured persons in the hospitals, Dr Singh assured that 'whosoever is responsible for the dastardly act', the government would take effective measures. He also clarified, "We will not be soft on terror and there will be no compromise on terror." Meanwhile, an unknown militant organisation named Islamic Security Force-Indian Mujahedeen claimed responsibility for the explosions. Sending an SMS to a Guwahati based satellite television channel the organisation also threatened to continue disrupting activities in Assam in the coming days. Mentionable that Indian Mujahideen claimed responsibility for explosions that took place in Jaipur, Ahmedabad and New Delhi weeks back. The opposition political parties including Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) with NCP and CPI had raised voices against the terrorist attacks and also dismissal of the Gogoi government. The AGP president argued that the common man of Assam is against the Gogoi administration and hence the government should be dismissed. The BJP president LK Advani while visiting the locations of Guwahati next morning criticised both the central and State government for not taking effective legal and administrative measures to prevent the infiltration from Bangladesh. He asserted that the problem of terrorism in Assam had been aggravated by illegal migration and the recent terror attack had an inter link with the illegal Bangladeshi settlers in India. Mr Advani, while claiming that there were 35 million illegal Bangladeshi settlers in India, also asked New Delhi to impose diplomatic pressure on Dhaka to address the serious issue.
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