Bangladesh regime cracking down on rebels

: Special Correspondent
SILCHAR, Jan 15: The surrender of 40 National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT-Biswamohan) on January 12 and 42 National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) and four ULFA cadres the following day, has raised the relevant question if the new regime of Bangladesh is cracking down on the Northeast extremist groups, taking shelter on that side of the Indian border.

According to S N Tiwari, IG of Cachar-Mizoram Frontier of BSF recently said that the list of 110 camps of Indian insurgent groups was handed over to Dhaka.

The number of camps as he revealed is declining which was 196 in 2003. Indications are that the rebels have begun to feel the heat of the new administration.

In fact, after being elected to power, Prime Minister of Bangladesh Begum Sheikh Hasina made it clear that Northeast extremists’ would not be allowed to use the soil of her country.

This is being watched with caution on this side of the fence. During her tenure as Prime Minister from 1996-2001, though she did try to take action against them, she could not succeed to the expected extent and the various militant groups continued to take shelter.

Considered against the potential threat by fundamentalist bodies, it would be too naive to say that anti-Indian terror and insurgent groups would be totally neutralized. At best, they could be marginalized.

Sketchy reports from across the border indicate that some of the Northeast based militants are moving to Myanmar, Bhutan and even China.

There are also reports that in the event of major operation by the Bangladesh Government, many of them might opt for shifting back to India through porous stretches of the border.

This has again brought the infamous Karimganj border into sharp focus which has put Mizoram-Cachar BSF based at Masimpur on high alert.

The Frontier Force has intensified its vigil on the riverine and unfenced areas in this Cachar-Karimganj sector.

In order to secure the border on this sensitive and vulnerable zone, BSF has taken suitable steps for bolstering up border management, besides coordinating with the second line of police defence.
IG of Law and Order of Asom Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta came down to oversee the Karimganj border on January 12 and held incisive talks with BSF and police officials to plug the loopholes and maintain maximum vigilance.

The BSF officials admitted during talks that the unfenced Sonatala and Balia areas in the district zone remain critically vulnerable.

One redeeming a feature of the return of Awami League led 14 party alliance is the revival of the spirit of liberation war of 1971.

Bangladesh Mukti Joddha Sangsad and Sectors Commanders’ Forum and former Mukti Bahini rank and file have been active to subdue the influence of fundamentalists. Coming days will show results, pointed out observers.

But the disturbing factor is that ISI’s copy cat Director General Field Forces Intelligence of Bangladesh has been playing second fiddle to the militants from Northeast and even facilitating their tie-up with terrorist groups like Huji.

This intelligence wing has also been giving protection to ULFA leaders like Paresh Barua, Arabinda Rajkhowa, Anup Chetia, NDFB chairman Ranjan Daimary, ATTF leader Ranjit Deb Barma and KLO supremo Jiban Singh.

Serial blasts in Asom, it is now more than clear, were planned on Bangladesh soil.
Observers however are hopeful that the process of surrender will continue despite the reverse signal. source: sentinel assam