NEW DELHI: Bangladesh’s proliferating insurgency in the North-East is likely to become a bigger problem than Pakistan’s support to stay in Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir during the next five to 10 years
This is the current assessment of the Union Home Ministry which is preparing a note on the various aspects of India’s border problem. It mentions several recently formed groups and emerging outfits which may become one major security headache for the Government in the coming decade
In Meghalaya for instance the Home ministry has identified two extremist outfits which have been recently formed Ironically the State was itself carved out of Assam in 1970 following years of agitation by the Khasi tribals.
The two groups are the Meghalaya United Liberation Army (MULA) and the Achlik Liberation Mitgrik Army (ALMA). The MULA has reportedly been formed by the inhabitants of Meghalaya. The East Gara Hills Is one of the five districts of the State comprising a population of 134550 (1981 census).
The Garos formed the organization to secure a separate land for their people. This would comprise the Garo dominated areas (including the West Garo Hills will population of 369877) Assam and Bangladesh.
This demand worries officials as it is similar to the Naga demand of an independent country comprising both Nagaland and the Naga part of Myanmar. That demand had led to protracted confrontations between the Nagas and the Indian army.
Both the MULA and the ALMA are said to huge camps and other bases in Bangladesh according to the Union Home Ministry.
Mizoram is another State where the authorities have identified two groups likely two cause trouble. The newer of the two is the Hmar Peoples Convention (HPC) formed by the Hmar tribal for the creation of a separate Autonomous District Council Comprising the Hmar dominated areas of Mizoram Cachar Valley in Assam and Manipur.
The HPC has reportedly established a nexus with Bangladesh in league with the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) a faction led by Th. Muivah known as NSC (D. Iisa matter of time before they set up camps in the neighbouring country sources feel.
The other group is actually a faction of the Mizo National Front (MNF) left disgruntled even after the Mizoram Peace accord was signed in 1986 granting Statehood to Mizoram and ending two decades of insurgency. This faction of the MNF led by Major Lalpianga is trying to revive in surgency in Mizoram. Lalpiang reportedly visited Bangladesh i the second halves of 1990 to seek the latter’s help in the MNF cause.
The Manipur-based Peoples Liberation Army (ILA) controlled by a six member Council led by Irengbam Bhorot and formed in July 1990) stands for the independence of Manipur. It projects itself as the champion of moral values and takes a tough stand against the serious drug problem in the State. While one PLA group gets help from Myanmar the other gets help from Bangladesh and has camps setup in the Manipuri-dominated areas of Bangladesh
In Nagaland the NSCN split into two groups back in 1988 The NSCN (K) led by S.S. Khaplang Burmese Hefrnel Naga gets lost its help from the un-administred areas of western Myanmar. The NSCN(I) however led by Muivah and Isaac Chisi Swe and operating mainly in the Ukhrul Senapati and Tamenglang districts of Manipur and Dimapur in Wagaland has established links with Bangladesh concerning shelter and procurement of arms and ammunition.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 1, 1992
