Sarkar’s wishlist
North East News Agency

WASTING no time, the Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar has submitted a long wish list to the new United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government at the Centre, which is heavily dependent on the Left parties for survival. While most of demands in the long list were submitted to the earlier NDA regime , Chief Minister Manik Sarkar clarified that as a new government has taken over the reins of the country, the State Government has decided to place its demands afresh. As usual insurgency and foreign support to the undergrounds top the list. The Tripura Government has submitted a list of militant camps in Bangladesh and urged it to take up with Dhaka the issue of dismantling the terrorist infrastructure on its soil and handover the rebels to India.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar handed over a list of 42 camps of out1awed All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF) and National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) in Bangladesh and also a map of the location of the camps in the neighbouring country. Mr Sarkar, in his first meeting with Dr Singh after the latter became PM urged him to raise the issue with Dhaka which would help address the menace of insurgency and restore peace in Tripura, which shares a 856 km-long border with Bangladesh. The Tripura Chief Minister informed that former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and former deputy prime minister L K Advani had raised the issue with Dhaka. However, the Bangladesh authorities did not act on India’s request, he lamented. Most of the ATTF and NLFT camps are located in the Chhitagong Hill Tracts and Sylhet in Bangladesh and because of their proximity to the Tripura border, it was easier for the militants to cross over into the State, Mr. Sarkar pointed out. The ATTF maintained close links with the United Liberation Front of Asom, (ULFA) which had set up camps and hideouts across Bangladesh, the Chief Minister claimed. He said that the Manmohan Singh Government should immediately raise the issue with the Khaleda Zia government as the militant groups had close links with the ISI.  Chief Minister also urged the Centre to expedite the fencing work along the Indo-Bangla border in Tripura which would prevent cross-border movement of the militants. Of the total 856 km-long border, more than 100 km have been fenced so far. “I have also requested Dr Singh to double the number of BSF battalions in the state,’’ Mr. Sarkar said. Presently 11 BSF battalions are deployed in Tripura. Many BSF battalions are posted in Jammu and Kashmir to combat insurgency in that State. On the extension of ceasefire with the Nayanbasi faction of the NLFT, the Chief Minister said there was no need to extend the ceasefire if the group surrendered within the six month ceasefire period. The Nayanbasi faction had signed the ceasefire agreement for six months with the Centre and Tripura government in April to be followed by peace talks. The Montu Koloi faction of the NLFT which also signed an agreement surrendered enmasse in May. The NLFT and ATTF have been involved in rampant killings and abductions in Tripura during the last few years.

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