Himanta Biswa Sarma says, 'Will implement accord with ULFA (pro talk) hundred per cent'

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the Centre and the Assam government will implement the points of the peace accord with the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) pro talk faction on a hundred per cent basis. 

Addressing the gathering after the signing of the historic tripartite Peace Accord with the ULFA (pro talk), the Assam Chief Minister said that he believes the accord signed today would be implemented on a hundred per cent basis. 

"There are several points that the government of Assam and the Government of India has to implement here. Home Ministry has worked out modalities to implement all the other accords that have been signed in the region so far. I believe the Government of India and the Government of Assam will be implementing the accord on a hundred per cent basis. I assure everyone we will develop Assam and make it one of the strongest states of India. We will take Assam forward," said CM Sarma. 

The Assam CM further said that the accord signed today will bring in permanent peace to the state of Assam. 

"Today after the signing of this accord, all the aspirations of the people of Assam will be fulfilled. PM Modi's outreach towards Assam and the Northeast has led to the peaceful environment in the state. All the peace accords signed so far have contributed to the peace. Under PM Modi's leadership, peace accords were signed in all the states of Northeast. Today only 15 per cent areas in Assam are under the AFSPA. The rest of the state is completely free from the law. This accord will bring permanent peace in Assam," said CM Sarma. 

The accord, a culmination of years of negotiations, aims to bring an end to the decades-old insurgency that has plagued Assam. Addressing a spectrum of longstanding issues encompassing politics, economics, and society, the agreement reflects a concerted effort to foster lasting stability in the region.

Notably absent from the agreement was the hardline faction of ULFA, led by Paresh Baruah, who steadfastly rejected the olive branch extended by the government. Baruah, believed to be residing along the China-Myanmar border, has remained a vocal opponent of the peace talks.

The pro-talks faction, under the leadership of Arabinda Rajkhowa, initiated unconditional discussions with the central government in 2011, overcoming strong opposition from the Baruah-led hardline faction.

The ULFA, formed in 1979 with the initial demand for a "sovereign Assam," had become a focal point of insurgency, leading the central government to declare it a banned outfit in 1990.