NIA chargesheets ULFA (I) chief Paresh Baruah, 2 others for IED blast conspiracy in Assam

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has chargesheeted three persons including Myanmar-based banned outfit ULFA (I) chief Paresh Baruah for being part of a conspiracy to carry out multiple IED blasts in Assam on Independence Day last year, officials said on Saturday.

Baruah, also known as Paresh Asom, Kamruj Zaman Khan, Nur-uz-Zaman, Zaman Bhai, Pradip, Paban Baruah is the chairman and self styled Commander-in-Chief of the proscribed terrorist group United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I), they said.

Baruah, along with Abhijit Gogoi alias Abhijeet Gogoi and Jahnu Boruah alias Arnob Asom alias Huntu, has been charged under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Explosive Substances Act in a court in Guwahati on Friday, the NIA said in a statement.

The three were found to be linked to Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted by the outfit at Dispur Last Gate in Guwahati as part of a broader ULFA (I) conspiracy to trigger multiple blasts across Assam to disrupt Independence Day celebrations in 2023, the agency said

The NIA, which took over the probe in September 2024, found that the IEDs were planted with the intent to cause death or injury, destroy property, and threaten the unity, integrity, and sovereignty of India and to spread terror among the people.