Banned ULFA(I)’s ‘operational commander’ Rupam Asom held from Assam-Arunachal border area

Dibrugarh/ Tinsukia: The ‘operational commander’ of proscribed outfit ULFA (I), Rupam Asom, was arrested from a forest area near the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border on Saturday, a top police officer said. Operations are underway in the area in search of more cadres of the militant group, he said. Rupam, who was allegedly running the outfit's extortion racket in parts of Assam, was named in the NIA charge sheet in the killing of Bordumsa Police Station officer-in-charge Bhaskar Kalita in 2018.

Tinsukia Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhijit Gaurav said Rupam’s movements were being tracked by security forces for the last four- five months. “Based on specific intelligence about his presence in Margherita area of Tinsukia district with associates, a joint operation was launched, leading to his arrest. One firearm and incriminating documents were recovered from his possession,” the SP said. He said that Rupam, the ‘operational commander’ of the banned outfit, was wanted in multiple cases, including the killing of Kalita, extortion, bomb blasts, kidnapping and attacks on security forces. “The operation is still going on in the area. This is a blow to ULFA (I) activities in the region,” Gaurav added. A joint team of Assam Police, Assam Rifles and military intelligence had carried out the operation around 4 am, another police official said.