Finding accusing fingers pointed at it for the October 30 serial blasts in Assam, the proscribed National Democratic Front of Bodoland has sacked its fugitive chairman Ranjan Daimary in its general council meeting to save the current three-year-old peace process with the Government of India.

The militant group has virtually split because general assembly's decision to replace Daimary with vice chairman Dhiren Boro alias B Sungthagra.

The general assembly meeting took another significant decision. It decided to participate directly or indirectly in next year's Lok Sabha election, giving credence to rumours that the outfit has decided to drop its primary demand for a sovereign land for the Bodo tribe.

The Centre had only recently confirmed the role of its Bangladesh-based chairman Ranjan Daimary in triggering the serial blasts in Assam with the help of a section of NDFB cadres based in Assam and without the knowledge of other top leaders of the outfit.

New chairman Dhiren Bodo said that the outfit wanted the continuation of the current peace process with the Government of India. He said the NDFB as an organisation was never involved in the serial blasts of October 30 last and it should not be held responsible for action of some of its wayward cadres. The current phase of truce with the outfit is due for renewal on December 31.

The outfit's publicity secretary B Sanjarang that Ranjan Daimary was invited for the general assembly but he failed to turn up.  The general council of the outfit was held at one of its truce-time designated camps in Kokrajhar after a gap of eight years.

Security sources said that removal of Ranjan Daimary could be a tactical move on part of the outfit which was under tremendous pressure to salvage its image after it had been confirmed that some of its men were involved in triggering serial blasts in the state. The move was essential for the outfit to earn another extension of the truce with Government of India.