"Hafizur Rahman (the prime accused) has told the magistrate that he had met Tarique Rahman at Hawa Bhaban along with ULFA leader Paresh Barua on April 1, 2004," the state-run BSS news agency quoted a senior police official as saying.

The official said Hafiz named many other stalwarts of Zia's past Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led four-party alliance government alongside intelligence and administrative officials at the fag end in his confessional statement made over the past two days before a magistrate. (PTI)

Itanagar: The 19th Assam Rifles stationed at Khonsa in Arunachal’s Tirap district, which has launched a major offensive against the underground elements, has apprehended ''sergeant major'' Ramchang of NSCN (IM) in a joint operation with district police on Sunday.

Sources on Monday said the cadre was one of the suspects named by Arunachal Pradesh Police in the assassination of former MP Wangcha Rajkumar in 2007. The case had already been handled by the CBI.

Ramchang is the NSCN(IM) ''second-in-command'' of Khonsa town but for the moment was Lazu ''town commander''.

He came to the town on Sunday and went straight into the trap laid by security forces.

The cadre would be handed over to CBI for further investigation, the sources added.

The unit had intensified efforts to nab him due to his involvement in the brutal assassination.

''On interrogation, the cadre has admitted that he is a 'sergeant major' operating in Tirap since September 2007. (UNI)

Guwahati: Assam government wants the Centre to check the two Naga rebel groups in truce from providing logistical support to the banned United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) in Myanmar base and indulge in violence in bordering districts in Assam.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi in his speech delivered in the Chief Ministers’ conference in New Delhi on Sunday said, ""Right from the inception of the ULFA, Myanmar-based NSCN(K) has been offering assistance and logistic support to ULFA which must be curtailed at this crucial juncture through by the Central government.

The activities of NSCN(IM), which has always been found involved in violent activities and extortions in the bordering district of Assam and Nagaland viz. N.C. Hills, Karbi Anglong, Golaghat, Jorhat, Sivasagar and Tinsukia district, also need to be checked by enforcing ceasefire ground rules effectively."

Both the NSCN-K and NSCN-IM have been in truce with Government of India for over a decade now while NSCN-IM have been holding peace-talks with the Government of India to find a solution to the vexed Naga insurgency problem.

Regarding the possibility of holding talks with the banned ULFA, Gogoi said the fugitive commander in chief of the banned outfit, Paresh Baruah is out to derail chances of any peace process taking place in the wake of arrest of most of the top leaders of the outfit recently.

Gogoi said, " Paresh Baruah who has reportedly shifted his base from Bangladesh to Myanmar with a handful of his supporter, is trying to regroup and derail the peace process which seems to be in the offing with the arrest of most of the top leaders of ULFA."

He underlined the need for gearing up vigil along the Indo-Myanmar border by advancing the borer outposts (BOPs) manned by Assam Rifles closer to the Indo-Myanmar border so that extremist and anti national elements cannot sneak into Assam through Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur to launch recruitment drive and other terror strikes.

Gogoi termed the anti-talks faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) led by fugitive chairman Ranjan Daimary who is believed to be hiding in Bangladesh, was a danger to the peace in Assam.

He stated that the anti-talk faction of the NDFB were in touch with anit-India forces to procure arms and other logistic support and in return the outfit was helping those forces inimical to India to have footholds in Arunachal Pradesh areas close to Assam boundary to carry out covert activities.

Itanagar: There was no basis for the report of a tiger being killed by villagers in Arunachal Pradesh's West Siang district last month as claimed by a national tv channel and a local daily on January 25, police sources said on Monday.

The Assistant Police Superintedent of West Siang H Lalin went to the village in Namuk area, 30 km from the headquarters town, to investigate on Friday, the sources said. The investigation was carried out at the request of the forest department, which was probing the reported tiger killing separately. "If anything of this sort happened it could not be possible without our knowedge and we would have taken action against the wrongdoers, whether they belonged to the community or outside," the village head told the police investigators. The police team also failed to find two villagers Tapak Kato and Kagra Gephu who were named in the media report. The village head denied that anybody by those names lived in the village or in the neighbourhood. (PTI)

Hundreds of people who came for first aid or emergency treatment were either turned back or referred to other hospitals.

Staff members of RIMSH have launched a cease work, including closure of outpatient department and emergency services since February 6 last over non-payment of the salaries of the staff members for over a month.

The strike was jointly launched by Teachers and Medical Officers' Association, Association of Junior Doctors, RIMSH Nurses Association and Non-teaching Welfare Association, RIMSH sources said. (UNI)

Jorhat: The opposition Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) on Monday said there would be no change in the leadership of the party till the assembly election scheduled next year.

Full faith was reposed on the leadership of president Chandra Mohan Patowary, party spokesman Atul Bora told reporters after AGP's steering committee meeting.

Although Bora denied any rift over the leadership issue, party sources said a majority of workers favoured a change in the leadership bringing back two-time former chief minister and AGP founder member Prafulla Kumar Mahanta to the top post. (PTI)