Two ULFA linkmen held for blast, BSF ambush toll rises to 9

"Two persons connected to the incident have been picked up for interrogation and search operations are on," Guwahati city SSP Deepak Choudhury said.

Five Congressmen including spokesmen Mehdi Alam Bora and Akhaya Rajkhowa were seriously injured when cadres of the anti-talk ULFA faction detonated an IED at Rajiv Bhavan yesterday.

Choudhury said police have conducted search operations in suspected hideouts of the militants in and around the city and other parts of the state.

"Extra precaution is taken in view of the ULFA threat to disrupt the coming assembly elections," he said.

Meanwhile, with the death of a BSF jawan injured in yesterday's ambush by anti-talk faction of the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) on a BSF convoy, the toll rose to nine.

The jawan succumbed to his injuries in the hospital at Bongaigaon, BSF sources said. The anti-talk faction of the NDFB has claimed responsibility for the ambush on BSF convoy. G Bidai, self- styled commanding officer of NDFB said similar attacks would be carried out if the security forces did not halt action against their cadres.