கிறிஸ்துவ பயங்கரவாதிகளின் துப்பாக்கிச் சூட்டிலிருந்து வியாபாரி தப்பினார்.

திமாபூரில் நாகாலாந்து கிறிஸ்துவ பயங்கரவாதிகள் துப்பாக்கிச் சூடு நடத்தியதில் ஒருவர் தப்பினார்.

Rebels target Dimapur trader
OUR CORRESPONDENT

A jawan keeps vigil in Dimapur on Tuesday. Picture by Eastern Projections
Kohima, Aug. 12: A non-tribal businessman escaped a bid on his life when armed Naga militants opened fire on MP Road in Dimapur this afternoon.

Police said Swapan Das, proprietor of Das and Company, sustained bullet injuries, one each on his neck and shoulder, after being shot at by two militants who fled after the attack.

Das, who is in his sixties, was rushed to a nearby hospital, where his condition was stated to be serious. Though the reason for the attack is yet to be ascertained, sources attributed the incident to the ongoing fratricidal killings in the state.

More than a dozen non-Naga businessmen have been killed by NSCN militants for ransom or extortion this year alone. Over a hundred have also been abducted for ransom, forcing affluent businessmen to flee Dimapur, the commercial hub of Nagaland.

On August 8, a businessman was fired at but escaped with two bullet injuries on MP Road.

The Isak-Muivah faction of National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) has pinned the blame on the rival NSCN (Khaplang) faction. Most of the businessmen in Dimapur are Biharis, Bengalis, Marwaris and Tibetans. Hundreds of Tibetans have also fled Dimapur. According to a new survey, business has fallen by 30 per cent in Dimapur because of militancy. According to intelligence sources, this year alone NSCN groups have extorted over Rs 200 crore from Dimapur alone. But the state government and security forces have remained helpless because of the ongoing truce with the NSCN factions.

The militants also do not spare commercial vehicles. Taxes are collected from under the very nose of the police and security agencies from the check gates. Hundreds of Manipur trucks and buses ply through National Highway 39 from Dimapur to Kohima. Security agencies and the administration have failed to flush out militants from the civilian areas.