From Our Correspondent
Guwahati: The Centre’s peace interlocutor for the Northeast and former Intelligence Bureau chief, PC Haldar, has been entrusted to facilitate peace talks with the hardliner faction of National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), a Bodo tribal insurgent group in Assam led by its chairman Ranjan Daimary, now lodged in jail.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi who is also in charge of the Home department, informed that Haldar had been entrusted to get in touch with concerned quarters to facilitate dialogue with the NDFB hardliners faction.
It was Haldar who had played a key role in making a peace process possible with a faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA); he is also negotiating with other tribal outfits in the region on behalf of the government of India.
Another faction of the NDFB called NDFB (Progressive) led by Gobinda Basumatary is already engaged in a peace process with the Government of India.
The faction led by Ranjan Daimary was opposed to the peace process involving the NDFB (P) and government of India.
However, there was a dramatic turn around after its chairman Ranjan Daimary was arrested in Bangladesh last year and handed over to Indian government.
Daimary is also the prime accused in October 30, 2008 serial blasts that rocked Assam as per the charge-sheet filed by the CBI.
There was appeal from a section of civil society amid the Bodo tribe for his release of bail and start of negotiation with the faction of NDFB led by Daimary.
Meanwhile, Assam government is eagerly expecting Anup Chetia, the general secretary of ULFA who is now under protective custody in Bangladesh, in the wake of India and Bangladesh on Monday deciding to go for exchange of sentenced persons.
Both sides also agreed that the Extradition Treaty, under consideration by both the Governments, should be finalized at an early date.
The ULFA general secretary, who was arrested in Bangladesh in 1997, completed his jail term and he is now under the ‘protective custody’ of the Government of Bangladesh.
Though India was pressing for his return, lack of an extradition treaty between both the countries complicated the extradition of Chetia.
The ULFA leader, who is close to the outfit’s anti-talks faction leader Paresh Barua, is expected to play a key role in success of the on-going peace process with the ULFA.