The Arabinda Rajkhowa-led pro-talk ULFA faction will remain neutral during the Assam Assembly elections, the banned outfit’s vice chairman Pradip Gogoi today said.
“We will have no role to play in the coming elections. Our organisation has resolved to be completely neutral during the polls. We will keep away from the election process and not participate in it,” Mr. Gogoi told PTI.
The two-phased Assembly election will be held in Assam on April four and 11.
“Implementing the peace process we have initiated with the government is right now more important for us than being involved with the elections,” Mr. Gogoi said.
A two-day ULFA meeting was on here, since yesterday to apprise its grass root level cadres of the discussions its leadership had with the prime minister, union home minister and home secretary in Delhi recently on the peace talks process, he said.
“We had not yet informed our members and our people about what we discussed in Delhi for a political solution to our problem. That is why we are having this meeting. It is not a secret meeting as mentioned by some quarters,” Mr. Gogoi said.
To a query if the ULFA elusive commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah would be participating in the peace process, Mr. Gogoi said, “The door is always open for all. Somebody may or may not take part in the process.”
ULFA’s anti-talk faction, headed by Paresh Baruah, had engineered an explosion in Assam Congress’ headquarter on March 14, injuring five party members.
“After 32 years of our struggle, we have come back to be among our people. So we don’t want to be restricted to designated camps with the image of insurgency but stay among our people to take the peace process forward,” he said.
ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa, Vice-chairman Pradip Gogoi, `foreign secretary’ Sasa Choudhury, `cultural secretary’ Pranati Deka, ULFA ideologue Bhimkanta Buragohain and other senior leaders were present in the meeting in Sibsagar district.
