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Rediff.com  » News » 'Govt won't wait indefinitely over ULFA talks'

'Govt won't wait indefinitely over ULFA talks'

By K Anurag
April 01, 2010 20:36 IST
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Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday stated that the government was not prepared to wait inordinately for the leadership of the banned United Liberation Front of Asom to come forward for holding negotiations within the framework of the Indian Constitution.

Gogoi on Thursday told mediapersons in Guwahati that there had been occasional encouraging feelers from the ULFA regarding peace talks.

"However, it is a very delicate matter and government wants definite response from the ULFA. At the same time we are not going to wait for indefinitely for the ULFA to respond to our call for negotiations," Gogoi said.

Referring to the fugitive ULFA 'commander-in-chief' Paresh Barua, the chief minister said the government wanted all the top ULFA leaders including those now in jail as well as at large to come over for talks.

The state government recently facilitated release of two of the senior ULFA leaders -- outfit's 'vice-chairman' Pradip Gogoi and central publicity secretary Mithinga Daimary -- from jail by not contesting their bail petition.

By doing so, the government wanted to showcase its sincerity to hold negotiations with the outfit. The government hoped that these two leaders would be able to prepare ground for talks.

However, the ULFA leadership has maintained that talks won't be possible sans presence of 'commander-in-chief' Paresh Barua and within the framework of Indian Constitution as the outfit wanted its core demand for 'restoration of sovereignty of Assam' in the agenda of discussion.

The ULFA 'commander-in-chief' has remained the major stumbling block in the path of holding negotiations because of his adamant stand on the demand for sovereignty. He instead asked the government of India to hold plebiscite in Assam on the outfit's 'sovereignty' demand if the latter was not wiling to discuss it across the table.

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K Anurag in Guwahati
 
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