Talks with banned outfits to follow due process: CM

Shillong: Dismissing media speculations on Government sending feelers to the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), a banned militant outfit, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma while speaking to this correspondent said, “No one can just start talking to a banned organisation unless they abandon all unlawful activities. The GNLA and other armed groups have to demonstrate their sincerity and seriousness to join the mainstream and not to engage in unlawful activities before any peace initiative is proposed.”
Sangma said that the media cannot rely on unofficial or unconfirmed sources for such reports as they are dangerous when viewed from the legal perspective. “In the case of banned outfits, the State Government is in a continuous process of consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and unless there is a designated interlocutor jointly approved by the MHA and the State Government, talks cannot just happen at the whims and fancies of any group or their representative who might be posing as a self styled interlocutor,” Sangma added.
The Chief Minister said that his Government is exploring all possibilities of bringing the armed outfits to the mainstream so that they can engage in productive activities but only after following due process.