Assam: NDFB bandh hits life in 4 Bodo-dominated districts

Ranjan Daimary sentence PTI NDFB chief Ranjan Daimary (left) being taken to the CBI court in Guwahati | PTI

The 12-hour Assam bandh called by the NDFB on Thursday to protest against the life sentences awarded to its president Ranjan Daimary and nine others affected normal life in the four Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD).

There was, however, no report of any untoward incident, police said.

The bandh, which began at 5am, brought life to a standstill in Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa and Udalguri districts, with all shops and business establishments remaining closed and vehicular traffic remaining off the roads.

These four districts were Bodo dominated and comprise the BTAD. As the day was a local holiday, the NDFB bandh had no impact on the attendance in the government offices, schools, colleges and other educational institutes.

There was no report of train services being affected.

The impact of the NDFB bandh was not much in the Brahmaputra valley, while in the Barak Valley, it failed to evoke any response.

The bandh has been called to protest against the life sentences awarded to NDFB chief Daimari and nine others by a CBI special court on Wednesday in the 2008 Assam serial blast case that had claimed 88 lives.

Daimary formed the Bodo Security Force in 1986 and in 1994, changed its name to National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB). Its objective was to secure a Bodoland state in the areas north of the river Brahmaputra in Assam.

The NDFB is under a ceasefire agreement with the Assam and Union governments since May 2005.