Speaking on Sunday after the landmark tripartite peace agreement between the Centre, Government of Assam and the pro-talk faction of the insurgent group United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), founding leaders Anup Chetia and Arabinda Rajkhowa expressed satisfaction and reiterated that the signing of the pact was in the best interest of everyone involved.
Addressing the media persons at a press conference at Guwahati's Srimanta Sankaradev Kalakshetra, the pro-talk leaders said that following the signing of the peace agreement, the ULFA will be disbanded in the upcoming 10 to 15 days and all weapons will be handed over to the government.
The ULFA pro-talk members who were part of the historic agreement signing process in the national capital on December 29, arrived in Guwahati earlier in the day.
During their address, Arabinda Rajkhowa and Anup Chetia stressed that the sacrifices of the martyrs will not be forgotten. They credited eminent scholar and intellectual Dr Hiren Gohain for the peace process finally getting over the line after several previous failed attempts since 1991.
They said, "The Centre has assured that Assam's integrity will remain intact. We will never forget the struggle and the martyrdom of those who sacrificed their lives for the cause. There have been several attempts at a peace agreement since 1991, however, there has never been an atmosphere until now for the process to culminate. We know we have been criticised over the peace pact in the past few days a lot, but the people of the state will start to see the benefits soon."
"This peace accord his been possible because of Dr Hiren Gohain. The ULFA pro-talk faction had raised the demand of 88 per cent seat reservation in the Vidhan Sabha, according to which a total of 102 constituencies will be reserved. This peace accord was signed with an agreement in principle over the delimitation of constituencies. Through this, 94 Vidhan Sabha constituencies will be with the indigenous people of Assam."
"The peace accord has been signed keeping in mind the recognition and respect that the families of the martyrs deserve. There are provisions to provide 1 katha 5 lessa of land to those who are landless. There will be a section who will protest this, because everyone does not have a common vision. This peace pact has been signed on the lines of benefitting everyone involved," the ULFA leaders added.
Meanwhile, Arabinda Rajkhowa and Anup Chetia also addressed the rebel leader with the ULFA-Independent (ULFA-I) faction Paresh Baruah saying that whatever he does is up to him. They also said that it was Baruah who taught them how to wield firearms.
They said, "There is a fake press release being circulated in the media. From here on, what Paresh Baruah does is up to him. He was the one who taught us how to fire a weapon. However, as the chief minister has said, there have been positive talks lately. In the upcoming 10-15 days, ULFA will be disbanded. We will surrender all our arms and ammunition to the government. ULFA pro-talk faction does not hold any political ambitions. There will not be any political leaders coming from us. Our aim was always has been the same."
The ULFA pro-talk leaders then went on to ask for forgiveness from the people of Assam, especially for the Dhemaji bomb blast case in 2004 which left 18 including children dead. They asked for forgiveness from the families of those who were victims of the incident.
