TAMARIND COURT SPECTRE IN EAST 

Guwahati, May 9 :     This city does not have socialites who can match Bina Ramani despite a thriving tea industry and a oil industry in its backyard. Neither has Guwahati?s glitterati ever had model bartenders like the slain Jessica Lal. Cocktail parties like the one held in the now infamous Tamarind Court in Delhi are still beyond the rich, famous and fashionable of Assam?s sedate capital city. Yet, the possibility of a repeat of the murder that took place in Ramani?s restaurant in Delhi?s upmarket Qutub Colonnade looms large over Guwahati. The reason? Small arms and even Kalashnikovs are in plenty for the ?protection of the high and the mighty? because they are on the rebel hitlists. In Assam, there is no sign yet of the militants? guns falling silent. Therefore, the state is compelled to provide Sharma-type ?perks?, or even more, to those who ?perceive a threat to their lives? from Ulfa and Bodo extremists. Like in the Punjab of the early Nineties, the ?threat? encompasses kin of Assam ministers and top businessmen. The only exception is that surrendered Ulfa militants are also on the list here. However, Assam director-general of police P.V. Sumant refuses to ?draw a parallel? between Sharma and people in Assam who enjoy ?security perks? like him. ?Why should I when Sharma has nothing to do with Assam ?? he reasoned. At the same time, though, the DGP said police were ?aware of the dangers of allowing too many licenced arms around?, implying that he did not rule out a repeat of the Tamarind Court incident somewhere in Assam. ?Legally possessing a gun for your self-defence does not mean that you become trigger-happy,? he added. Sumant declined to specify the number of people who had been provided security by the state , saying it was ?classified? information. He said police had been periodically holding meetings to assess who was actually in need of security. Describing a Tamarind Court-like situation, pub-crawler said: ?It was more than 45 minutes since we were served the last drink at the bar. Some men walked in and asked for drinks. When refused, they laid an AK-47 at the bar counter. The manager was woken up and came with the storeroom keys of the bar. What had he not...??