Have been browsing the Assam papers. And the following was the leading story in the Sentinel yesterday.
After a spate of ISI sightings and 'ISI nabbings' in Assam, duly reported for our benefit by a variety of netters, including journalists, I asked a question of one of these journalists sometimes back what happens to these suspected ISI elements and what crimes they are charged with. The report below finally gives us a clue. What I am curious about is the consternation of leading citizens reported. If I had to go by what I read it means: The 'suspected ISI agents ' are guilty, but were set free by the courts because the police and the state govt du-jour are inept and could not prove their case. I say du-jour ( of the day), because one of the complainers used to rule Assam for quite a number of years. It raises some questions in my mind: A: If the concerned pillars-of-society are correct about the guilt of the 'suspected ISI agents', what do they know that the police did not? Should they have raised their voices and come out to testify ? Or at the very least tell the police what they knew. Was it not their patriotic duty? B: What is the crime associated with being a 'suspected ISI agent'? Is there some Indian law that prohibits someone from being an ISI agent, self-styled or so labeled by pillars-of-society or by anyone who is not an ISI agent? It really boggles the mind. C: Is police ineptitude something new, that they have been unaware of? If I am not mistaken, the complainers include an ex-CM, an ex-Chief Secy and an ex-Police Chief . Wouldn't people want to know what measures they took to improve the quality of policing? Finally, I am of course relieved to notice that there have not been much IS sightings reported to assamnet in recent months. Perhaps they have all been 'nabbed' and Assam's scourge has been finally eradicated. Or just re-habbed and released after years of detention, raising the pillars-of-society's hackles. What do netters think? cm *********************************************************************************************************** Government's role on release of suspected ISI agents severely criticized By our Staff Reporter GUWAHATI, June 14: Former Asom Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, former Asom Chief Secretary JP Rajkhowa and former DGP HK Deka today expressed serious concern over the release of as many as ten suspected ISI agents by the court for the failure of the Assam Police to prove charges against them. They termed it as a total failure of the Government and a serious threat to the internal security of the country. Mahanta even said the incident has once again proved Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi's soft stand towards the ISI and Islamic fundamentalists. However, the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) preferred not to air any comment on the issue now. Talking to The Sentinel, Mahanta said: "It was due to the bold stand taken by the then AGP Government that police could arrest as many as ten ISI agents on the basis of strong ground, but those ISI agents have been set free due to negligence on the part of the Tarun Gogoi-led Government. Either the police didn't investigate the case deeply or the prosecutor was not given the required briefing by the State Government or the State Government took a soft stand in the case. Whatever may be the case, it has proved once again that Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi is soft towards the ISI and fundamentalists. This is undoubtedly a serious threat to the internal security of the country." It may be mentioned here that the 10 suspected ISI agents had been arrested during the tenure of Prafulla Kumar Mahanta as Chief Minister of the State. Blaming it on the Assam Police, former Asom Chief Secretary JP Rajkhowa said since it is a serious matter and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs should step in. Talking to The Sentinel, Rajkhowa said : "If the ten are not ISI agents, the Assam Police is responsible for holding them so long on mere suspicion. After their arrest, did the Assam Police ever consult the RAW and IB, given the fact that the issue was so serious and a grave threat to the internal security of the country?" Rajkhowa further said: "The Assam Police can still detain them as they are a threat to national security. They can still be arrested under the National Security Act (NSA) and their cases may be referred to an advisory committee headed by a retired judge of the High Court. The Assam Police is actually incompetent to handle such cases." Former Asom DGP HK Deka was also surprised at the release of the 10 suspected ISI agents. Talking to The Sentinel, Deka said: "It's not only an unfortunate incident, but also a threat to the internal security of the country. When the suspected ISI agents were arrested, sufficient incriminating documents were seized from their possession. Maybe, the police didn't investigate the case deeply and that led to its failure to prove the charges against the 10." Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba-Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) general secretary Manoj Baruah said: "It's a total failure of the Government and the police. If the 10 are not ISI agents, what action will the Government take against those who detained them for nine years?" AUDF working president HRA Choudhury, on the other hand, said: "This incident has proved that only judiciary can give justice to the people, not administration. The incident has also proved that there is a tendency to frame the people of a particular community as fundamentalists." It is worth mentioning here that when the 10 suspected ISI agents had been arrested, including four from the Guwahati railway station, the police had claimed that it had seized various incriminating documents from their possession and claimed that it had been a big success. What will Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi say now? It is still fresh in the minds of circles concerned that the Chief Minister, while replying to a question from Opposition leader Chandra Mohan Patowary on March 10 this year, told the Assam Assembly that ISI activities had been on the rise in the State and that his Government had arrested as many as nine ISI agents. Gogoi had also told the Assembly that his Government had enough evidence to prove that MULTA and HuM had links with the ISI. This apart, at a meeting on internal security in New Delhi on December 20, 2007, Gogoi said: "The Northeast, of late, emerged as an important hub for espionage activity for agencies such as the ISI. But we are determined to root out that menace." Does Gogoi realize the gravity of the situation? _______________________________________________ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org