By Albert Thyrniang
The Christmas and New Year lull of ‘peace’ has ended. The temporary unsigned and unofficial truce has ceased. The Christmas and New Year crackers which were a nightmare and a hell for dogs and other animals have been replaced by gun and bombs. Violence has returned in Garo Hills. It could continue throughout 2014 and beyond.
Though the government has set its target on neutralizing the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), it’s the bitter rival, the splinter Achik National Volunteer Council (ANVC-B) that is causing the government a headache. The militant outfit, whose signed peace pact with the government is under scrutiny, is in direct confrontation with the state police. They are engaged in a war of words and war of action.
The simmering tension started on 8th January when ANVC-B men attacked policemen in former’s alleged ‘illegal’ camp. Acting on a FIR filed by the militant group, Tura police from Chandmari Beat House had gone to camp to verify the missing cadres when they were fired upon, seriously injuring two of them. Upset with government for ‘hunting’ its members the ANVC-B spilled the beans by revealing that Dr. Mukul Sangma was elevated to the Chief Minister post because of their blessing. He also succeeded to retain himself as Chief Minister after the 2013 election thanks to the militant group which made sure that all the deserted Garo MLAs returned to him. The revelation is shocking and deserves a comment but a little later!
The turns of events are/were dreadful. On January 11 a petrol pump in Tura was attacked by unidentified persons in a moving vehicle damaging two cars. Though another militant group, the Achik Tiger Force claimed responsibility for the attack, the pointing finger was naturally on the ANVC-B. Hence, a few hours after the bomb attack, Tura Police raided the ANCV-B camp at Daren Apal village, a stone’s throw from Tura town and gunned down four occupants. The security forces also seized ammunitions from the ‘unmilitary styled’ camp. In death, the deceased have been disowned even by relatives and the organization they once belonged to as their corpses are lying unclaimed in Tura civil hospital morgue.
We are in for hard times ahead. The hardest times, perhaps, will be faced by the Chief Minister himself. He stands accused of having a nexus with the Chairman of the ANCV-B. The exposition was made by the political secretary of the outfit, Ajaju R Marak who, after posting the ‘unauthorized’ open letter to the Chief Minister expectedly, fled and is even feared killed in the Daren Apal camp encounter. The fugitive/dead militant leader went to the extent of revealing the closeness of the CM with the Chairman of the ANVC breakaway faction. He detailed the closed door meetings of the CM with his boss, the ‘strategic’ attacks, kidnaps and ensuring the defeat of certain candidates in the last Assembly election.
The United Democratic Party (UDP) and Nationalist People Party (NPP) have demanded the CM’s resignation and a CBI/NIA investigation. The UDP, which had earlier alleged nexus of Congress legislators with militants in Garo Hills, has gone on the offensive. The party has promised to take the issue to the highest offices of the country, the President, the Prime Minister and the leaders of the opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha besides bringing the ‘unholy alliance of the CM with the unlawful and proscribed outfits’ to the notice of the North East Regional Party Front.
Likewise, the NPP has strongly condemned the alleged nexus of the CM with the ANVC-B. His arch rival, PA Sangma termed the CM as the ‘Common Chairman of all the militant groups’ and the ‘leader of criminalization of politics in the state’. His new party, marginalized in the last election will take this matter to the doors of the Prime Minister, the Union Home Minister and the Opposition Leaders of both houses of parliament.
The Chief Minister has denied having any links with ANVC-B terming the allegation as an attempt to malign him. The desertion of the ‘whistle blower’, Ajaju R Marak from the ANVC-B camp is indicative of malafide intent of malice, said the Chief Minister, who also pointed out to the denial of the militant outfit of any links with him.
There has been a closely guarded secret that politicians have links with militants and vice versa. The Chief Minister himself has not ruled out the politician-militant nexus in Garo Hills. But now that a top leader of a militant group has blown the whistle, the connection may no longer be an open secret but ‘a secret in the open’. A CBI or NIA inquiry is necessary to establish the nexus once and for all. Obviously, for an independent and credible inquiry the CM has to step down. That is the least he can do at this juncture.
If an investigation happens, the person that holds the key in this disturbing episode is Ajaju R Marak. There are reports though, that he was one of the four militants killed by the police in the encounter at Daren Apal village. Even if he is alive, a militant will not depose before an investigating agency. Another man that could provide evidences is the ‘Commander-in-Chief’ of the ANVC-B, Mukost Marak; whether or not he made phone calls to Garo MLAs to support the lonely CM as alleged by his junior. Here again a rebel ‘military chief’ will not appear before any agency. Hence there is no positive hope from this front.
However, all is not lost. The most important person is undoubtedly the Chief Minister himself. The ball is in his court. He has to prove his innocence. He has to prove that there were no meetings with the Chairman of the concerned groups. The next ones are the respected MLAs. Did they lend support to the CM under the instruction of someone unconstitutional? Did they do so under threat? Were they called up by the self styled Commander-in-Chief of the ANVC-B?
While rival political parties bay for the blood of the Chief Minister, violence in Garo Hills is likely to continue or even escalate. If the Chief Minister does not resign but action against the ANVC-B continues, the outfit may return to the jungles. If the Chief Minister does resign, ‘the peace process’ may be derailed so the ANVC-B might go underground. We are staring at a bleak future. The GNLA may be perceived as the main hindrance to peace but there are numerous rebel outfits that hate lasting peace and love perpetual violence! Shrewdly, some talk peace but are engaged in violence. In a word, peace is still sadly a ‘utopian dream’!