The proscribed United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and outlawed Revolutionary People's Front (RPF) in Manipur, have called for general strike and boycott of 'India's Independence Day' on August 15 next to protest 'colonial Indian occupation' of their states.
Handing over of United Liberation Front of Asom leader Anup Chetia to India, cooperation in anti-terror steps and firing along the international border will be high on the agenda during the home secretary-level talks between India and Bangladesh beginning Wednesday.
Suspected militants belonging to the banned United Liberation Front of Asom shot dead three Hindi-speaking workers at a brick kiln in Dibrugarh district of eastern Assam late on Sunday night.
Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigmey Thinley on Monday said there were no militants from Assam in the Himalayan country and reiterated Bhutan's commitment to prevent any anti-Indian activities on its soil.During a brief stop-over at the Guwahati International Airport on his way to Thimphu, Thinley told reporters that as on date, there was no presence of any militant from the banned United Liberation Front of Assam or National Democratic Front of Bodoland in Bhutan.
In view of the continued insurgency and sprouting of at least new insurgent groups during the year gone by, the Assam government has vowed to adopt a three-pronged strategy in the New Year to tackle the problem more effectively.
The self-styled chairman of militant Karbi National Liberation Army and two cadres of anti-talks faction of United Liberation Front of Assam-Independent were among six terrorists arrested by the security forces in Assam during the last 24 hours.
Suspected abductors from Assam Adivasi National Liberation Army on Thursday set free the kidnapped tea executive Anniruddha Tanti, from Hirajuli Tea Estate under Dhekiajuli police station in Sonitpur district.
Former chief of the Intelligence Bureau P C Haldar will be the interlocutor between the government and the proscribed United Liberation Front of Assam if a peace process is initiated with the outfit, given the positive signals emanating from its ranks.
The Centre has conditioned that the dialogue will be held between mutually agreed upon emissaries of the ULFA and government of India.
After the Naga leader's death, Chinese intelligence may ensure ULFA terrorist Paresh Barua takes over as leader of the anti-India rebel groups operating out of Myanmar, says Nitin A Gokhale.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Tuesday expressed interest to meet intellectuals and civil society leaders in Assam who have organised a state-level convention to mount pressure on the banned United Liberation Front of Asom to come forward for talks with the government.
Police suspected that the militants were carrying the trans-shipment to carry out strikes in Guwahati.
Initially the Army had claimed that four of its men received minor injury immediately after Wednesday evening's blast under two of its vehicles at Chonhkham in Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh.
The seriously injured Congress leader was rushed to Guwahati Medical College Hospital where he was declared dead.
"We did not talk about the money being paid by Tarun Gogoi to ULFA in our stories. This was mentioned in some of the local papers."
The army and police have rushed to the spot and have launched operations in the other parts of the state.
"If they think that by violence they can sabotage holding of the National Games then my government would go to any extent to ensure that the games are staged befitting the dignity and pride of the state of Assam," he said.
United Liberation Front of Asom chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa, who was arrested over two months ago, on Saturday said his outfit was not keen on peace talks but wanted to resolve long-drawn contentious political issues through negotiations. "I do not want peace talks, but want talks to resolve the problems facing the state," Rajkhowa said. "People will not be kept in the dark on the issue of talks and they will be the first to be taken into confidence," he said.
For the banned ULFA, it is the people from the 'Indian sub-continent' who are illegal migrants in Assam and not the 'trespassers' from neighbouring Bangladesh and Nepal.
The ULFA made light of the OIL stand that seismic survey in Brahmaputra riverbed has become necessary,
The chief of Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh Mohan Rao Bhagawat said on Saturday that the Centre should hold no talks with insurgent groups in the Northeast on the country's sovereignty and integrity, as these are non-negotiable.
Pradip Gogoi, arrested on April 8, 1998, is in judicial custody at the central jail in Guwahati, Anup Chetia, who was held in Dhaka on December 21, 1997, is still in detention in Bangladesh. Ideologue Buragohain is now in Tezpur jail, Sonitpur. On December 4, Rajkhowa and Raju Barua were arrested by Border Security Force men.
Self-styled chairman of the rebel United Liberation Front of Asom Arabinda Rajkhowa and ten other ULFA cadres, who were handed over to India by Bangladesh on Friday, will be produced in a court in Guwahati on Saturday afternoon and could be charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the stringent Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act.
The 53-year-old, whose real name is Rajib Rajkonwar, was one of the founder leaders of the ULFA along with commander in chief Paresh Baruah. The ULFA was formed on April 7, 1979 to lead armed struggle to 'free Assam from the clutches of colonial Indian rule'.
This is the second major threat ONGC has faced in Assam in less than a year.
The pro-talks faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam has lauded the on-going process for reconciliation of Naga rebel groups during a visit to the camp of NSCN (khole-Kitovi) in Nagaland.
Assam's new Director General of Police, Khagen Sarma on Friday said that Pakistan's spy agency Inter Services intelligence and other external forces are behind United Liberation Front of Asom (anti-talks) faction leader Paresh Baruah's efforts to form a common force comprising all northeastern insurgent groups to fight Indian security forces
Singh said moves by the group leaders to abandon their bases in the country and take shelter in other countries had not gone down well with the people of Assam.
ULFA's fugitive chairman, Arabinda Rajkhowa, stated, "We call upon the entire people of our region to boycott and prevent the celebration, in any manner, of India's Independence Day in our Region on 15 August 2008 to consolidate our solidarity in the struggle for liberation from Indian colonial occupation. On this day, a general strike shall be observed throughout the Region from 01:00 am to 6:00 pm.
BSF personnel found to be involved in cross border smuggling. Minister says the guilty will be tried. Government is open to dialogue with ULFA.
A huge cache of arms and ammunition belonging to the banned United Liberation Front of Asom were recovered by the police from Sadiya while the Army shot dead two militants in Bongaigaon district on Saturday.During a raid conducted on the basis of specific information, the Assam police stumbled upon a cache of 27 AK 56 assault rifles, 117 magazines and 400 ammunition hidden in the granary of a village household at Kukurmara village in Sadiya sub-division of Tinsukia district.
The United Liberation Front of Asom runs seven hotels of international standards in Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet in Bangladesh and operates three bank accounts in that country, the Border Security Force said on Friday.
Strongly reacting to All India Congress Committee vice president Rahul Gandhi's purported remarks that Asom Gana Parishad was in power for a term allegedly with the backing of insurgents, the Asom Gana Parishad on Friday said it would initiate legal action him.
The anti-talks faction of the banned United Liberation Front of Asom called off its 12-hour Assam bandh after the visit of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to the poll-bound state on Monday has been rescheduled.
Following a meeting of the group's leaders, a spokesman of the outfit informed that it was unanimously decided in the meeting, which was attended by all the top leaders of the pro-talks faction, that no leader or cadre of the outfit get involved with the forthcoming assembly election in the state and the message has been sent to all the members of the outfit through 'proper channels'.
Paresh Baruah's shadow continues to loom large in Assam's political landscape.
At least two persons were killed and over 10 injured when suspected ULFA militants triggered a blast at a market area near the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) headquarters at Maligaon at around 6:30pm on Friday.
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