Guwahati, Aug. 16: Top Ulfa leaders, who have returned from Bangladesh, are engaged in extortion and have amassed huge personal property in the state, an NGO, Assam Public Works, has alleged.

NGO president Abhijeet Sharma told reporters here today that his organisation had enough materials to prove these leaders were running an extortion racket and engaging in fraudulent business deals.

He alleged that one of the leaders had purchased property worth Rs 3.75 crore at Shantipur here.

“These Ulfa leaders are seen engaging in peace talks with the government. They claim that the talks are progressing and are on the right track. But this same group of leaders is carrying out extortion and engaging in illegal business deals. The state government and Assam police are aware of this. The Ulfa pro-talks faction chairman, Arabinda Rajkhowa, a Bangladesh-returned leader, must come out clear before the public about the role and activities of other such leaders,” Sharma said.

The NGO was founded by Sharma in 2000 with over 200 members, most of them related to Ulfa militants. It has been able to motivate 120 Ulfa militants to surrender and has filed more than 200 complaints of human rights violation with the Assam Human Rights Commission against Ulfa (Independent) commander-in-chief Paresh Barua, accusing him of forcibly keeping youths in his camps and using them for militant activities.

Rajkhowa vehemently denied the charges levelled by the NGO and said there was nothing wrong if some Ulfa pro-talks faction leaders engaged in business to earn a livelihood.

“Business deals must not be done by unfair means and by violating the ground rules of ceasefire. No leader of the pro-talks faction is involved in extortion,” he said.