Bodies of the truckers who were gunned down by the outfit in May. A file picture

Silchar/Guwahati, June 29: Dispur is reviewing the security scenario in North Cachar Hills district, vis-à-vis the declaration of ceasefire by the Dima Halam Daogah (Jewel), after Mizoram police today said they seized a large cache of arms from a truck near Aizawl yesterday which was meant for the outfit.

The haul comes amid Track II parleys with the outfit to extend its three-month unilateral ceasefire, which expired last week.

Track II diplomacy is a kind of informal diplomacy, in which non-officials (academic scholars, retired civil and military officials, public figures, and social activists) engage in dialogue, with the aim to resolve conflicts or build confidence among the parties.

Home department sources said the Mizoram government has informed Assam about the weapon haul and their intended receivers.

“We have held back our operation against the DHD (J) as it had given us indications about further extending the truce. The government is looking into the nitty-gritty of responding to its ceasefire offer. But the haul has forced us to take a fresh look at the situation,” a source in the home department said.

The superintendent of police of special branch, Aizawl district, K. Rozina, today said the arms comprising 17 AK 47 and 56 rifles were seized from a truck at Buichali village, 30km west of the capital town, yesterday afternoon.

He described the arms haul as one of the biggest in Mizoram in recent times.

The police officer said the truck was on its way to Cachar district from Champai district in Mizoram.

The truck was impounded and its driver and cleaner were detained for further interrogation.

The police are investigating the duo’s role in the transhipment of the arms.

The Mizoram government has put the police on alert following the haul .

Sources said the arms were purchased at Chiang Mai, an arms market on the Thailand-Myanmar border.

Police sources in NC Hills said they were in touch with their Mizoram counterparts to amass details about the haul.

“We are examining whether the truce offer was a ploy by the group to utilise the time to strengthen itself,” an officer said.

Sources added that the outfit, led by a Jewel Gorlosa, had amassed a large quantity of cash in the last few months through extortion. The group is now using the cash to buy modern weapons from different sources.

Gorlosa is now reported to be in Kathmandu to explore the possibility of buying arms from Nepal to south Assam.

The DHD (J) had gunned down 10 truck drivers and helpers in May. The outfit also targeted railway property and personnel before calling a ceasefire.