Thaindian News

Guwahati, Oct 23 (IANS) Two NDFB (National Democratic Front of Bodoland) rebels were killed in an encounter Friday in Assam when security forces stepped up operations to rescue a civil engineer from Andhra Pradesh who was kidnapped by militants, officials said.
A police spokesperson said there was a fierce encounter between security forces and a group of NDFB militants near a thickly forested area in Singimari in Kokrajhar district, about 260 km west of Guwahati.

A special police commando team accompanied by soldiers was involved in a massive search operation in the area to rescue P. Krishna Rao who was kidnapped by suspected NDFB militants from a highway construction site near Joypur in Kokrajhar district Oct 16.

“The security team was engaged in a search operation looking for the kidnapped engineer when they came under attack from the NDFB militants. Two militants were killed in retaliatory attacks,” a senior police official said.

Rao was the project manager of Gayatri Company, a private infrastructure firm engaged in constructing a four-lane highway in a 63-km strip in Kokrajhar district.

“We don’t have a clue on Rao’s whereabouts, nor is there any ransom demand from the captors,” the official said.

“We have been raiding various possible locations in the area and the search is on in full steam.”

Meanwhile, in a separate encounter security forces early Friday shot dead a militant of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) on the outskirts of Guwahati.

“Based on specific intelligence inputs we raided a house and the ULFA militant opened fire. We shot back and he was killed,” the official said.

Some arms and ammunition were recovered from the dead ULFA rebel.