By IANS
Guwahati : At least four people, including two paramilitary troopers, were killed and five others injured in two militant attacks Monday in Assam, officials said.
Militants of the outlawed Dima Haolam Daogah (DHD), popularly known as the Black Widows, attacked a power facility near Umrangso in North Cachar Hills district, about 300 km south from here, a police spokesman said here.
“The militants tried to enter the main gate of the power station when armed paramilitary troopers challenged them,” a senior police official said. There was a fierce gun battle for about 15 minutes. “Two paramilitary troopers and two civilians were killed in the encounter. The militants escaped,” the official added.
The DHD is a rebel group fighting for a separate homeland for the Dimaca tribe in southern Assam.
In the other incident, five people, including four paramilitary troopers, were injured Monday night in a powerful grenade explosion in the eastern district of Morigaon.
“Two militants on a motorcycle lobbed the grenade at a security check-post on the main street, injuring four paramilitary troopers and a civilian,” the police official said.
The police blamed the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) for the grenade attack.
On Sunday, 17 people were injured in a powerful grenade attack in the heart of Guwahati. The police again held the ULFA, fighting for an independent homeland, responsible for that attack also.
The ULFA, however, denied the accusation Monday, saying the outfit was not involved in the attack.