India lives in her villages, we're told, in every other sanctimonious public speech. That's bullshit, just a figleaf. India dies in her villages.- Arundhati Roy Things took a bloody turn on Christmas eve for the residents of Kokrajhar, Chirang, Udalguri and Sonitpur districts in Assam. With the Peshawar killings still ripe in our memories, this spate of communal, territorial revenge in Assam caused nationwide shock. As many as 76 tribals were killed and more than 5,000 Adivasis and Bodos were displaced. But did you know that this was never an isolated incident? The region's nightmarish killings have been going on for two long decades now. The last five years have seen a steady rise in violence.

What?

These were one of the many attacks caused by the umbrella group, NDFB. Between 1992 and 2001, persistent acts of violence have claimed the lives of 1262 civilians and 167 security personnel.

When?

NDFB, previously known as Bodoland Security Forces (BdSf) was born out of a failed accord between the state, the All Bodo Students Union (ABSU) and the Bodo Peoples' Action Committee (BPAC) in 1993.

The state failed to to hand over 2,750 villages to the proposed Bodo autonomous council. The state felt that it wouldn't be right to put the reigns under the Bodo community which forms only 10% of the population in a region which has a mix of Adivasis, Muslims and Christians.