Court allows Assam student arrested for pro-ULFA-I post to take exams

Barshashree Buragohian was arrested on May 18 and charged under stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act

A local court has allowed a 19-year Assam student, who has been in jail for two months for a Facebook post allegedly supporting the banned United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I), to take her exams next week under police security.

Barshashree Buragohian was arrested on May 18 and charged under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for writing: “Akou korim rashtradroh [will rebel against the nation again].”

Her lawyer said Buragohian wrote to the court, which gave the go-ahead on Thursday, seeking permission to appear in exams.

The case did not get much attention until Buragohain’s parents appealed to chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and the police to release her for her exams.

Sarma on Thursday claimed if she had not been arrested, she would have joined ULFA-I. “If the girl’s parents and she herself declared that she would not join the outfit, she can be released. But if she says she will wage war against the country, the law will take its course,” Sarma said.

The state government and police have drawn flak on social media platforms for arresting the student for what many insisted for writing a poem.

Assam Police chief Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta on Wednesday said Buragohain has not been arrested for writing poems. “But when someone writes that she wants to join ULFA-I or encourage others to do so, it becomes a problem. That is why she has been arrested. So, instead of joining ULFA, you better stay in jail.”

Buragohain also wrote on Facebook that she “would rebel against the nation a thousand times for the sake of freedom.” The banned ULFA-I has been seeking an independent Assam for 43 years.