MILITANT LEADER GIVES UP ARMS IN GUWAHATI

Wanted militant Ingti Kathar Songbijit, along with 1,039 others, gave up militancy in Guwahati on Tuesday.

Welcoming the militants to the mainstream, Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal said, “I welcome all of you to the mainstream after giving up arms. We must all work together towards a peaceful and prosperous Assam. The government would do all it can to ensure that you are rehabilitated well.”

Songbijit, is the chief of Peoples’ Democratic Council of Karbi Longri (PDCK), a militant outfit from the Karbi Anglong region. He was earlier the commander-in-chief of the banned National Democratic Front of Bodoland.

The other militants belonged to five militant outfits in the Karbi Anglong — PDCK, Karbi Longri North Cachar Hills Liberation Front (KLNLF), United Peoples Liberation Army (UPLA), Karbi Peoples’ Liberation Tiger (KPLT) and Karbi Liberation Front (KLF). The outfits, active in Karbi Anglong district of Assam, have been demanding a separate state for the people belonging to the Karbi tribe.

The five outfits are expected to sign a formal ceasefire agreement in presence of Union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday, a senior official said on condition of anonymity.

The militants surrendered as many as 338 arms and over 11,000 rounds of ammunition, said Hiren Nath, IGP, special branch of Assam Police.