INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
firmed up by an Indian-origin man who allegedly worked for the Israeli spy agency Mossad, according to a soon-to-be-launched book.The
outfit to seal the deal that consisted of assault rifles, pistols, light machine guns and explosives.The episode which had remained under
wraps happened in mid-1993, almost two years after the Ulfa leadership shifted its base to Bangladesh to evade arrest by Indian security
forces, reveals the book titled, 'Ulfa: The Mirage of Dawn' (Harper Collins)
This incident was not linked to the widely publicised Chittagong case of 2004, in which 10 truck-loads of arms and ammunition meant for the
Ulfa and a few other rebel groups were confiscated by Bangladeshi security forces.The book, a copy of which is with TOI, offers a panoramic
perspective of the rebel group
Based on decade-long field research by journalist and author Rajeev Bhattacharyya, it focusses on Ulfa's foreign bases and operations that
extended from Pakistan and Bhutan to Bangladesh, Myanmar and China
The Ulfa had suffered a vertical split more than a decade ago after its top leaders including chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa were handed over by
Bangladeshi security forces to India.Thereafter, the faction headed by Rajkhowa joined the peace process and an accord with the government
is likely to be inked soon
Singapore whose parents had migrated from Tamil Nadu several decades ago.He was closely associated with Mossad, and also doubled up as a gun
Two senior Ulfa functionaries who were in Bangladesh had revealed details about the Indian-origin Mossad agent
Subsequently, the chief was shown a wide array of weapons from where he made the selection
Finally, the transaction entailed about 600 weapons which were to be delivered after a month by a ship near the Chittagong port in
Bangladesh where the entire top brass of Ulfa lived.From Romania, the Ulfa trio (one of them was Lachit Hazarika alias Salim who was
brief sojourn where they also explored the possibility of purchasing weapons in the future.Back in Bangladesh, Baruah hired a trawler from
Chittagong port to be taken to the seas for receiving the weapons
because it had charted a different route
The Ulfa squad was alarmed when it came to know about the ship's arrival at the port
Loading the weapons onto trucks without the knowledge of the police appeared to be an uphill task
Nor could the ship be allowed to remain moored in the port indefinitely
Even as Baruah was pondering over the next course of action came the news that the entire consignment had been seized by the police
Ulfa functionaries, who were in Bangladesh back then, believed that he was killed by the Israeli spy agency after his links with the rebel
