Power Cuts For The People

"Rebels of the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) have systematically launched an ethnic cleansing against the Muslim settlers so that they can gain control over land vacated by these people," Assam health minister and government spokesman Himanta Biswa Sarma told Outlook. According to him, rebels of the NDFB had provided fire cover to its supporters who torched Aminpara, a village of migrant settlers, on October 5. NDFB spokesman S. Sanjarang has denied the charges, calling them "totally baseless".

Hagrama Mohilary, chief of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), under whose administrative jurisdiction the scene of the current violence falls, has also pointed fingers at the rebel group. "NDFB militants have tried to cash in on the situation by targeting the Muslim settlers," he said. Backing Mohilary, Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi added: "We are investigating. If the charges against NDFB men are true, we may even review our ceasefire with the group."