Jnanpith brought Paresh closer to Mamoni
�Path is set for the peace process�
Jnanpith award winner Dr. Indira Goswami needs no introduction. She has been in the news due to her personal effort to persuade and bring the ULFA to the negotiation table with the Centre. The path is nearly cleared for the peace process to start.
Our Correspondent in
The Sentinel (TS) : How did you first come in contact with the ULFA?
Indira Goswami (IG) : It was about 12 years ago. I used to visit home during June-July. This is the vacation time here in
In 1993, I was invited by some students to address a meeting which they had organized in the memory of a great the icon, Bishnu Rabha, in Darrang. I accepted their invitation since I had great regard for Rabha. When I was a student of
Thus began one of the most memorable rides of my life. Throughout the road I heard the sounds of army trucks. 1993 was the peak of the army operations against the outfit. The car took a strange, wild path. Its lights were switched off. When I enquired how they would drive without lights, they said that they knew the way even in the dark. The car halted in front of a house. A family came out and took me inside with great respect. They told me that they were doing welfare work � providing food to the poor, helping them claim many Government provisions, building roads, libraries, etc. I ate with them and tried to comprehend their mindset. I wanted to see the weapons which they were using. They obliged me. Finally, when they drove me back, it was nine in the night.
After a few years, I heard that almost all the boys of that camp had been shot dead. The sole survivor, who is now a top leader of the Surrendered ULFA (SULFA), wrote to me on
When I received the Jnanpith Award, Paresh Baruah, the �commander-in-chief� of the ULFA, telephoned to congratulate me. More than that, he said that he felt happy that Assamese literature had become well-known outside
TS : What prompted you to act as the mediator in the peace process?
IG : The hard core militants of the United Liberation Front of Asom fought for 27 years for the liberation of
After the incident in Dhemaji on
TS : Will ULFA accept the Government�s initiative for talks? What is your opinion on the outfit�s demand of releasing 10 top jailed leaders?
IG : I definitely think they (ULFA) will come to the negotiation table. Paresh is totally devoted to his mission. He, along with other top leaders, will definitely come for the discussion with the government. I totally agree that all the members of the executive council of the outfit should be present in the meeting. Then only the talks will be successful. So, I don�t think there is any harm in releasing the 10 top leaders who are languishing in different jails. This is the last chance to break the deadlock. If the government does not take the initiative all will be lost. The peace process could have started a long time back. But due to some wrong decisions of the Centre as well as the banned organization, the process has been delayed.
TS : You said that Paresh Baruah is totally devoted to his mission. Is the killing of innocent people by the outfit is justified?
IG : I myself have lost many of my kins in the gruesome killings by the outfit. Girish Goswami was shot dead in broad daylight in the premises of the State Bank, where he was the manager. He was my childhood friend and a grandson of my father�s eldest sister. Manabendra Sharma was killed in a busy bazaar in broad daylight. He was a family friend and a relation.
Several years ago, when the bridges on the river
But the peace process has to be started. We cannot follow the violent path. Assamese civilization will be destroyed if these killings don�t come to an end. So, I request the outfit to shun violence and come to the discussion table. We have seen enough bloodshed. Hopefully, a new peaceful atmosphere will prevail in
TS : There was some controversy regarding the phone tapping issue....
IG : Yes, the Delhi Police had tapped my phone on many occasions. I came to know about it when a person, probably from the Intelligence, called me up one fine day and told me that he was jobless and wanted to join the ULFA. He spoke to me in broken Assamese. When I rebuffed him saying "who do you think you are talking to," he hung up the phone. I was pretty sure that it was the work of the Intelligence with the help of Delhi Police. It was a long time back when a high official of the Eastern Command, Tezpur, became very friendly with me just to find out the whereabouts of ULFA cadres. He tried to persuade me in many a way. When he found out that I won�t oblige him, our friendship came to a halt from that moment itself.
TS : Do you think there is any internal rift within the ULFA? There have been speculations regarding a rift between Paresh Baruah and Arabinda Rajkhowa.
IG : I don�t think there is any rift now between Paresh Baruah and Arabinda Rajkhowa. Both have high regards for each other. There may have been some internal rift sometime ago. That was the time when many innocent people like Sanjoy Ghosh were killed. This is my personal belief. I don�t know for sure if there was any (rift).
TS : What is the present position of the peace process? The Government has already sent the formal invitation to Arabinda Rajkhowa?
IG : The invitation had been dispatched from here (
TS : When will the outfit reply? Will there be a positive outcome?
IG : I hope that a reply from Arabinda Rajkhowa will come to me within 4-5 days. Yes, I truly hope that there will be some positive outcome. There has been enough of bloodshed. The people of
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