New Delhi: A tripartite peace deal between the Centre, the Assam government, and the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) has been signed in Delhi, bringing the curtains down on one of the biggest insurgent groups in the northeast region.
The ULFA (Independent) faction led by Paresh Baruah remains opposed to talks. The peace deal with the oldest insurgent group in Assam aims to address issues such as illegal immigration, land rights for indigenous communities, and a financial package for Assam’s development.
Home Minister Amit Shah told reporters in Delhi that the Centre will ensure all reasonable demands by ULFA are met in a time-bound manner, and the organization will be disbanded.
“We want to assure the ULFA leadership that their trust in the Centre to ensure the success of the peace process will be honored,” Shah said, crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for bringing peace and stability to the northeast.
Shah also mentioned that the removal of the Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act (AFSPA) from many areas of Assam and other northeast states is proof that insurgency is nearly extinct in the region.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who sat beside Shah, said the peace deal with ULFA will solve the problem of insurgency in the region to a large extent. The Modi government has signed many peace deals with insurgent groups in the northeast after they agreed to lay down their arms. In November,
Manipur’s oldest valley-based armed group UNLF also signed a tripartite peace agreement with the Centre and the state government. Founded on April 7, 1979, in Sivasagar, Assam, ULFA emerged with the objective of establishing an independent sovereign state for the indigenous Assamese people.
The group began its armed operations in the late 1980s, led by figures such as Paresh Baruah, Arabinda Rajkhowa, and Anup Chetia. Initially perceived as a group aiding the needy and the poor, ULFA’s tactics soon escalated to armed struggle against the Indian government.
The catalyst for ULFA’s branding as a banned terrorist organization was the killing of Surendra Paul, a prominent tea planter and brother of Lord Swraj Paul, and the subsequent extortion and threats to tea estate owners. These events exerted international pressure on the Indian government, leading to decisive action against ULFA.
A delegation of 16 pro-talk members of the ULFA , headed by its chairperson Arabinda Rajkhowa, represented the faction.
The historic agreement is expected to go beyond previous agreements, highlighting an unmatched economic stimulus and strong safeguarding for indigenous populations, an official said.
The demand for a “sovereign Assam” led to the formation of the ULFA in 1979. Its subsequent subversive actions resulted in the Central government designating it as a prohibited group in 1990.
However, prominent leaders of ULFA were either arrested or surrendered around 2009. But the faction led by Paresh Baruah (known as ULFA-I) is still involved in insurgency activities and has not agreed to come to the table for talks.
