On 23rd January (Tuesday), the pro-talk faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) officially disbanded itself. The undivided ULFA was formed forty-four years earlier on 7th April 1979, at the Rang Ghar in Sibsagar to establish a “sovereign socialist Assam” through an armed struggle. Later the outfit split into two factions and the pro-talk faction began discussions with the Centre in 2011.
The decision to disband the ULFA was taken at the outfit’s final general meeting held at Sipajhar which is located around 55 km from Guwahati. It comes twenty-five days after the pro-talk faction of ULFA signed a tripartite memorandum of settlement in New Delhi with the Centre and the Assam government on 29th December.
Regarding the dissolution of the outfit, ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa said, “The decision to disband and dissolve the outfit was taken at the meeting today as stipulated by the settlement signed in Delhi. With this, the cases of sedition on the outfit will be lifted.”
The pro-talk faction of ULFA has around 700 total members. The anti-talks faction of the outfit, ULFA-Independent (ULFA-I) has camps in Myanmar and parts of the northeast. They have around 200 members and are opposed to any settlement till Assam’s sovereignty is discussed.
The ULFA’s general secretary Anup Chetia had earlier stated that after the meeting, they would hand over the letter of the outfit’s disbandment to the Chief Minister of Assam.
According to Chetia, after the disbandment, the ULFA leaders and cadres will have different identities. He added that he will personally be involved in social work.
Last month on 29th December, the pro-talk faction of the outfit signed an agreement in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
This was a significant pact as the banned ULFA-Independent has been the only major insurgent outfit in the state after the ULFA pro-talks faction signed the agreement with the Centre and Assam government. ULFA (Independent), the other faction of the group led by Commander in Chief Paresh Baruah remains outside the peace agreement. Except for Baruah, all other founding members of ULFA have left armed struggle.
Click here, to read the details of the tripartite agreement signed last month.
The agreement covered a wide range of subjects, including politics, land rights, NRC and immigration, employment, economy and skill development, flood control, industries, agriculture, education, culture, sports infrastructure, tourism, demands of ST status, Act East Policy, and settlement of ULFA cadres who have returned to the mainstream.
Last month’s settlement stipulated, “ULFA shall abjure the path of violence, give up all arms/ammunition, and disband the armed organisation within one month”.