GUWAHATI, Feb 16 � In an interesting development, the commander-in-chief of the hardline faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), Paresh Baruah recently called up a few of his former colleagues, who are now in pro-talk faction, to enquire about the progress of the peace talks with the Government of India. However, Baruah is still maintaining a hard line on the issue of talks with the Government of India and it is unlikely that he would agree to come for negotiation at least in the near future.
Meanwhile, in a major blow to the Paresh Baruah faction, senior ULFA cadre Guli Asom surrendered before the Tinsukia police along with three others today, according to our Tinsukia correspondent.
Highly placed official sources told The Assam Tribune that Baruah called up the pro-talk faction leaders of the ULFA within the last one week and spoke for a long time. Sources said that the security agencies managed to intercept a few of the calls and found that the talks between Baruah and the pro-talk faction members were very cordial.
Sources revealed that Baruah called up pro-talk group leaders, including chairman of the pro-talk ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa and other senior leaders Sasha Choudhury and Raju Baruah. He enquired about the progress of the peace talks between the pro-talk faction of the ULFA and the Government. But most of the talks centered around personal matters. Baruah was enquiring about the well being of his former colleagues and he was asking question on how their children are coping with education, where they are staying and how their other family members are doing in life. �The talks were friendly and they did not discuss politics much,� sources added.
On the whereabouts of Baruah, sources said that according to information available with the security agencies, the ULFA leader is spending most of his time in the Ruilie area bordering Myanmar and China and only rarely he visits the camps of the ULFA and other militant groups in Myanmar. Though there were reports that Baruah recently visited Pakistan, the reports could not be confirmed and �there are reasons to believe that those reports were only hoaxes.�
Meanwhile, the hardline faction of the ULFA suffered a major setback as hardcore member Rahendra Moran, alias Guli Asom has surrendered before the police at Tinsukia today. Baruah is concerned with the surrender of Moran as he had collected a substantial amount of money in recent times and the money is with him.
�According to assessment of the security agencies, Moran collected at least Rs 50 lakh,� sources added. Moran was in touch with police for a long time now.
Moran alias Guli Asom, was responsible for the outfit�s extortion related activities in the upper Assam districts. Others who surrendered are Parikshit Moran, Champak Hazarika and Kushal Buragohain.