Indian among two ULFA members sentenced to life in Bangladesh

DHAKA: An Indian man, who was a leader of the banned separatist ULFA outfit, and his Bangladeshi aide were today sentenced to life by a court for intrusion, illegal possession of weapons and carrying out terrorist activities.

A district sessions court in northern Kishorganj handed down the life imprisonment to the two leaders of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA).

"ULFA leaders Ranjan Chowdhury and his associate Pradi Marak were tried under four cases on three major charges of intrusion, terrorism and illegally possession of weapons," a police official familiar with the trial told PTI.

The duo faced the trial after their arrest in July, 2010 from Bhairab area of Kishorganj by elite anti-crime Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and four grenades, a pistol and a revolver with bullets were recovered from their possession.

The verdict came more than a year after they were indicted under four cases, one of which was under the tough Anti-Terrorism Act.

According to TV reports, Chowdhury - who is also referred to as 'Major Ranjan' - was found guilty of all the charges while Marak was acquitted of the charge under the Arms Act but found guilty in the rest three.

RAB officials earlier said Chowdhury, who hails from Dhubri Gouripur's Madhu Shoulmari area of Assam, was associated with the ULFA since 1990.

He was a major coordinator of ULFA activities maintaining links with other leaders of the outfit in Bhutan and Nepal while he secretly took refuge in Bangladesh in 1995 and identified himself using several fake names at different times.

Marak, on the other hand, was associated with a local non governmental organisaton in neighbouring Sherpur district and worked as Chowdhury's aide.

A Bangladeshi court last year handed down death penalty to 14 people, including two former ministers, two ex-army generals and a top ULFA leader, Paresh Barua, in the country's biggest-ever weapon haul involving the outfit.

Several other top ULFA leaders, including their chief Arbind Rajkhowa, were reportedly arrested in Bangladesh and subsequently handed over to India in recent years but Dhaka officially did not confirm any of these incidents.

For years together, New Delhi had alleged Bangladesh was a safe haven for its separatist elements, an allegation refuted by Dhaka while in recent years India appreciated the neighbour's initiatives as Bangladesh said it would not allow any such elements to use its territory.