Tinsukia killings: TMC delegation meets kin of five people killed by ULFA terrorists

At least five persons were killed by suspected terrorists on Thursday night in Assam's Tinsukia district.

KOLKATA: A delegation of Trinamool Congress leaders arrived in Assam's Tinsukia district on Sunday and met the family members of the five persons who were killed by suspected ULFA terrorists on Thursday night. The TMC delegation gave Rs 1 lakh each as compensation to the families of the five people killed by the ULFA gunmen, according to ANI.

The TMC delegation is being led by Derek O' Brien, who is the TMC parliamentary party leader in Rajya Sabha.

Dhola(Assam): TMC delegation led by Derek O Brien meets families of the five people killed by ULFA terrorists in Tinsukia pic.twitter.com/XUP0S2aEQG

— ANI (@ANI) November 4, 2018

The TMC delegation came to Tinsukia via Dibrugarh.

Assam: TMC delegation led by Derek O Brien arrives in Dibrugarh, they are going to Tinsukhia to meet families of the five people killed by ULFA terrorists pic.twitter.com/EUMfslB2EC

— ANI (@ANI) November 4, 2018

Other members of the delegation include the party's Lok Sabha MP Mamata Bala Thakur, Rajya Sabha MP Nadimul Haq and MLA Mahua Moitra.

The deceased, identified as Ananta Namasudra, Abinash Namasudra, Subal Das, Dhanai Namasudra and Syamal Biswas from the Bengali community, were killed at around 7 PM  on November 1 in Bishnoimukh village near Dhola-Sadiya Bridge

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal had condemned the attack and directed law enforcement agencies to take stringent action against the culprits.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on Friday expressed anguish over the killings and said an "environment of violence" was prevailing in the country.

Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee demanded a court-monitored inquiry and called for the resignation of Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal over the incident.

A TMC delegation of six MPs had gone to Silchar on August 2 to assess the situation in Assam in the wake of the publication of the complete draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) on July 30 but was stopped at the airport. 

They were not allowed to leave the airport and were sent back the next day. 

Meanwhile, the Congress on Saturday observed 'black day' across West Bengal in protest against the killings of five Bengali-speaking people in Assam's Tinsukia district on Thursday.

Several top state Congress leaders took out protest rallies in the city and accused the BJP-led government in Assam of pursuing divisive politics.

"Both the Assam government and the central government should take steps to ensure safety and security of Bengalis living in Assam," state Congress president Somen Mitra demanded.

A 12-hour state-wide bandh was called on Saturday to protest the gunning down of five men in Tinsukia district during which the protesters squatted on railway tracks, pelted stones at vehicles and burnt tyres on roads in some districts of Assam.

The ULFA is a separatist outfit operating in North-East India for the indigenous Assamese people.