Jintu Bora’s mother (left) mourns the death of her son at her residence in Majuli. Picture by Abir Borgohain

Guwahati, Nov. 5: Suspected Ulfa militants gunned down the 13-year-old nephew of a former comrade, apparently in a case of mistaken identity, in Majuli last night.

Jintu Bora, a Class VIII student of Kathimotia High School, was shot dead when he and his uncle, Dipak Bora, a surrendered Ulfa militant, were about to enter Dipak’s house at Balichapori village under Garmurh police station around 11pm after returning from Ras festivities.

Sources said Dipak was the target of the assailants as he was a police informer and had played a crucial role in the killing of Ulfa militant Amrit Dutta, a key accused in the Sanjoy Ghose murder case. Dutta was killed in an encounter with security forces in Majuli early this year.

“He (Dipak) was the target of Ulfa,” an official of a central intelligence agency told this correspondent. Dipak had joined Ulfa in 1995 and was a cadre of 28 battalion’s Bravo company. He surrendered in 2007.

Interestingly, Dipak had directed his nephew to dress like him — in a black jacket and jeans — while accompanying him to the Ras festival last night.

A police official said Jintu and his family were about to hit the bed when his uncle came calling on his motorcycle and asked him to accompany him to the Ras festival. Dipak’s six-year-old son also went with them.

Sources said Jintu’s father, Ajit Bora, a casual worker with the PWD department, stayed in a separate house from his brother in the same village.

“They returned from the Ras festival around 11pm. Dipak and his son were entering the house and Jintu was asked to close the gate.When Jintu was closing the gate, a barrage of bullets ripped through his body,” the police official said, quoting Dipak, who fled by a back door of the house after hearing the gunshots.

Jintu was hit by five bullets. His family members rushed him to the hospital but he died on the way.

Dipak, who returned to the site of shooting after several hours, later told the police that he saw about seven persons, who had been hiding in a bamboo grove near the house, walking away after the shooting.

He also told the police that he had left the Ras festival venue early as he saw a suspicious-looking person following him.

“Dipak may have received a threat from Ulfa recently and was a bit cautious,” the police official said, adding, “This was probably the reason why he had asked his nephew to accompany him.”

Although Jintu was only 13, he was well-built and resembled a grown-up man, his strong muscles a result of working in the fields.

The police arrived at Balichapori village, 7km from Garmurh police station, this morning. They recovered two empty cartridges of AK-47 rifles from the site.

The All Assam Students Union took out a procession with Jintu’s body and demanded that the assailants be caught immediately.