PRAFULLA Kumar Mahanta has probably decided that offence is the best form of defence when it comes to dealing with the banned ULFA. Having survived an audacious attempt on his life on June 8--a remote-controlled device was blasted by militants narrowly missing Mahanta's car while he was coming back home from the airport--the chief minister has turned the incident to his advantage. First, he organised a six-party bandh to protest against the assassination bid. Then, he disclosed to the media that the political wing of the ULFA along with several district leaders were willing to come forward for talks but were hamstrung by its belligerent military wing. This put the outfit on the defensive.
The ULFA's reaction was swift and strong. In a rare statement, its chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa lambasted Mahanta for trying to create a rift within the ranks by terming some leaders as hardliners and others as moderates. Projecting Mahanta as "friend of the enemy (the Centre)", Rajkhowa said: "Our enemy's friend cannot be our friend." The ULFA leader, along with commander-in-chief Paresh Barua, deputy commander-in-chief Raju Baruah, foreign secretary Sasha Choudhury and general secretary Anup Chetia, reiterated the outfit's desire to sit for talks only if its three conditions were met:
With neither prime minister Gujral, who visited the Northeast and promised to alleviate its problems, nor the state government willing to concede the last two terms, there appears very little chance of an immediate breakthrough. The first condition is not insurmountable. Says one intelligence official: "If talks with NSCN leaders can be held in Zurich and Geneva, there is no reason why the same thing cannot be done in the ULFA's case." But that is easier said than done. The stalemate on the talks front brought about by a hardening of stands on both sides has resulted in an escalation of violence.
The ULFA ambushed an army patrol in upper Assam's Tinsukia district on June 16, killing six securitymen. The militants first blew up a vehicle by planting an IED (improvised explosive device) underneath and then opened fire with AK-47 rifles. Security forces are concerned over the ULFA's new-found penchant in employing IEDs for attacks. The attempt on Mahanta was well-planned but poorly executed. That it occurred in Guwahati showed up the lapses in security arrangements for Mahanta, who already enjoys an NSG cover. With the law and order situation plummeting, security forces had a small consolation: they managed to rescue two hostages holed up in an ULFA hideout for two months.
