Govt ready for talks with militants: Patil

As tension continued unabated in Assam following bomb blasts in the Kokrajhar and other districts, Union Home Minister Shivaraj Patil on Monday described the serial blasts as "acts of cowardice".

Patil said the Assam government had asked for additional forces and the Centre would do everything to support the Assam government and its door for talks with insurgent outfits like the United Liberation Front of Assam (Ulfa) was "still open".

"These are dastardly and cowardly acts. The Centre will do everything to help the Assam government," Patil said adding "if anybody comes with any condition and wants to hold talks, we will not accept it. Talks should be held without any conditions".

Security experts said the current bout of violence and insurgency in Assam was probably taking place because the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) and Ulfa had joined hands. This was clear from the area of operation. Kokrajhar, Sonitpur and contiguous areas are the traditional hunting ground of the NDFB.

In December 2003, the Bhut-anese Army had worked hard to dislodge the NDFB and Ulfa camps operating from Bhut-anese soil, at the instance of India. An intensive Army operation was mounted by Bhutanese forces. What is happening currently is psychological warfare, a way by insurgents to assert themselves and let government know they were still around.

Prior to its dislodgement from Bhutan, the outfit was reported to have established working relationship with certain elements in Bhutan. Several Bhutanese officials were reported to have visited the training camps located in Bhutan and have been alleged to openly aiding NDFB cadres.

The NDFB, along with Ulfa, on various occasions was found to be allegedly channelling its funds through the "Bhutanese diplomatic bag" to their leaders based in Southeast Asian capitals.Bhutan was not the only country the insurgents had camps in. According to a list submitted by the Indian authorities to their counterparts in Bangladesh, the NDFB maintains at least two camps in the Khagrachari and Tangail districts of that country.

According to official figures, there have been 15 blasts in the state so far and three incidents of firing. At least 36 people have been killed and 194 injured in these incidents since yesterday.

But Ulfa and the NDFB are in all likelihood, taking advantage of the government's position that migration and insurgency are related problems that are socio-economic in nature and should not be handled as law and order issues.

When asked if the Centrewould still hold talks with Ulfa, Patil said: "We have not closed the doors for talks, but it is our duty to save human lives and innocent people".

But the only concrete proposal Patil could forward was to accede to Assam's demand for more security forces and to devise a "multi-pronged" strategy including the appointment of nodal officers in every north-eastern state who would co-ordinate among themselves on various related issues.