2 Adivasi rebels surrender in Dibrugarh, Assam

DIBRUGARH: Two militants belonging to the All Adivasi National Liberation Army (AANLA) have surrendered at a police station in Assam through the 18 Garhwal of army and 171 Battalion of CRPF.

Deepak Gowala, (49) and Raj Sahani (23) from Rangagara in Golaghat district surrendered with one 7.65 Pistol with one live ammunition, a 0.22 pistol with 6 live ammunition and 3 AK-47 live ammunition at the office of the Superintendent of Police in Dibrugarh district.

The AANLA was formed in the second half of 2006.

The AANLA claims to be fighting to safeguard the tribal culture of the plantation workers whose ancestors were brought from northern India by British colonialists. The outfit demands Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for the Adivasi community and rehabilitation of the displaced members of its community. Official sources, however, indicate that AANLA is not a well-organised group and it does not have well-thought out aims and objectives.

The Golaghat and Karbi Anglong districts of Assam are the primary area of operation for the outfit. Few arrests of the AANLA cadres have also been reported from the western Assam district of Kokrajhar and the Dimapur city of Nagaland.

The AANLA is headed by its chief commander David Tirkey alias Nirmal.