Executed two cadres spying for Assam police: ULFA-I

GUWAHATI: The United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I) has executed two of its cadre for allegedly spying for Assam police, the banned outfit claimed on Saturday, a move that could derail the expected peace talks between the state government and the insurgents.

Dhanjit Das of Barpeta and Sanjib Sarma of Baihata Chairali were awarded “death sentence” after being convicted for spying by the outfit’s lower judicial council on May 4 and 5, respectively, ULFA-I announced on social media.

“Since the crime committed by both cadres are unpardonable, as per decision of the lower judicial council, they were given undesired death today on May 7,” said the notice issued by self-styled brigadier AZ Shironam Asom.

The notice, seen by HT, claimed that Dhanjit Das, who had recently joined the outfit, fled from a camp on April 24 and was captured by ULFA-I a day later. During interrogation, Das confessed to have prodded several new recruits to surrender.

“He accepted that during his attempts to join the outfit, he was secretly in touch with few police officials with the intention of handing over our supporters/well-wishers to Assam Police,” the notice said.

On May 4, ULFA-I’s lower judicial council sentenced him to death after holding him guilty of escaping from the camp and encouraging others to do the same during a special operation, and for being involved in “anti-revolutionary activities”.

Sanjib Sarma, the second man to be condemned, had confessed about joining ULFA-I on directions of police officers for monetary benefit and with the intention of passing on internal communications to the authorities to eliminate commanders and cadre, the notice claimed.

On Saturday, the outfit also released a video that purportedly showed Das and Sarma admitting to have acted on behalf of police and against ULFA-I.

“While working for Assam police, I believed ULFA-I was a terrorist outfit. Only after I joined it that I realised it was a revolutionary organisation, working to protect Assam’s society and territory. Fuelled by greed for money and instigation by police, I had committed anti-Assamese tasks. I urge youth not to fall for such traps and bring their own deaths,” Sarma was heard as saying in the purported video.

“I had joined ULFA-I for the greed of money and on the instigation by Assam police officers. I had tried to escape from the outfit’s camp and take along other newly recruited cadres. I have realised my mistake and urge youth not to take such steps and welcome their own deaths like me,” Das was heard saying in the purported video.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

“I wish and pray that this news is false,” said Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. “If such a thing has really happened, it is very unfortunate. This act would give a signal to those who are thinking of joining ULFA-I, that they should refrain from taking such a step. I once again appeal to ULFA-I to sit for peace talks so that we don’t have to hear such sad and unfortunate news in future.”

When HT reached out to police, officers refused to comment on the accusations made by ULFA-I, or confirm the claims made by the outfit about executing the two men.

“He had left home on March 22 without informing anything to me. I hope this news isn’t true and ULFA-I forgives him and lets him return home,” Das’s wife Suman told journalists. The Barpeta resident, in his early 30s, worked as a salesman in a clothing store, before joining the banned outfit. He has a four-year-old son.

“I just came to know about the news. They (ULFA-I) shouldn’t have killed such a young boy. Sanjib left home in March and would have turned 19 next month,” said Sarma’s mother Junu Devi. “His father (who works as a daily wage labourer) left home early morning and has no clue about it. What will I tell him when he returns?”

Speaking to a local news channel over phone, ULFA-I chairman Paresh Baruah confirmed the execution of the two cadres. He said the two were provided a nice meal on Friday night as per their last wishes and gunned down with a single shot each from point blank range around 8 am on Saturday.

HT cannot independently confirm the authenticity of the phone call.

“It is true that both have been executed. Both of them had confessed to have worked under instructions of Assam police officers and tried to infiltrate and damage our outfit. Hence, we had to take a tough decision against our own wishes and sentence them to death as per rules of our outfit’s constitution,” Baruah claimed.

On April 26, ULFA-I had released a video, in which Sarma was seen mentioning that he had been sent by police officers to infiltrate the outfit and pass on messages about its internal developments to security agencies. A day later, the outfit released a list of nine persons, who were allegedly being trained by police to spy on ULFA-I.

Following release of the video, Guahati’s joint commissioner of police Partha Sarathi Mahanta, who was named by Sarma as having instigated him to infiltrate ULFA-I, had denied the accusations. “I don’t know why he took my name,” Mahanta said.

In recent months, there have been several reports of young men from across Assam leaving their homes and jobs to join ULFA-I. This year 234 people have left their families to join the outfit, according to unofficial estimates.

With the possibility of peace talks with ULFA-I, many unemployed youth who have family problems are starting to join the outfit with the hope of gaining some benefit through rehabilitation packages if a peace deal is signed in the near future, according to police and intelligence officials aware of the matter.

While there used to be reports of executions of ULFA-I cadre in 1990s for alleged violation of the outfit’s constitution, such incidents had not been reported in recent years, police said.

Since the Bharatiya Janata Party led government under chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took charge in Assam in May last year, there have been indications both from the government and the outfit that they could agree to peace talks.

Citing the Covid-19 pandemic, ULFA-I declared a unilateral ceasefire in May 2021, which continues till date. The move was seen as precursor to peace talks. But now, with the outfit accusing police of sending infiltrators in the guise of cadre and the death sentences given to Das and Sarma, the process could stumble.

Insurgency in Assam started in April 1979 with formation of ULFA as an offshoot of the anti-foreigner’s agitation against inflow of illegal immigrants to the state from Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan). The stated aim of the outfit was to create an independent Assam.

In February 2011, ULFA split into two groups. One group was led by chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa that decided to give up its violent past and sit for talks with Centre without any preconditions and another was led by commander-in-chief Paresh Baruah, which decided against talks and rebranded the faction as ULFA-Independent. The latter still maintains that sovereignty should be on the agenda during peace talks.