Shillong, Dec. 16: Ten years after they were declared unlawful organisations, the Centre has re-affirmed the need to carry on with the ban on the Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) while its counterpart the Achik National Volunteer’s Council (ANVC), currently under ceasefire, is free of the tag.
A senior police official said today the HNLC was banned again as there was no change of stand of the militant outfit as far as its demands were concerned. The Centre, following the violent activities of HNLC and ANVC, had declared them unlawful organisations on November 16.
In a recent notification, the Union ministry of home affairs said as HNLC has openly declared its objective of secession from the Indian Union and continues to indulge in extortion, maintains link with other militant groups in the Northeast, it is an unlawful association.
According to the Union home ministry, the activities of HNLC are detrimental to the sovereignty and integrity of India.
If these activities were not immediately curbed, the HNLC would re-group and re-arm itself, expand its cadres, procure sophisticated weapons, cause heavy loss of life of civilians and security forces, and accelerate its anti-national activities.
After the HNLC was banned 10 years ago, the group engaged in largescale killings, kidnappings and extortion till 2005. Later, police went hard on HNLC, busting its financial cells and arresting many cadres. Many HNLC cadres were also killed in these encounters.
The biggest setback for the group was the decision of its chairman, Julius Dorphang, to come overground in 2007. With Dorphang joining the mainstream, as many as 150 cadres of HNLC followed suit.
The main reason for the HNLC cadres to leave the organisation was because of scarcity of funds. The cadres who had surrendered or were arrested said lower-level cadres led a miserable life by working as labourers in the betel nut plantation while the top leaders of HNLC led a lavish life in Bangladesh.
The police have also confirmed these reports and said the militant outfit was facing fund constraints.
However, the HNLC’s recent renewal of tie-up with the NCSN (I-M) is a cause of worry for the police.
There are also reports that the HNLC is recruiting more youths from Jaintia Hills to expand its activity in the coal and limestone belts. Though the group had expressed the desire for holding talks with the government, it has not spelt out the modalities for talks.
The HNLC had reiterated in the past that as it had little faith in the state government, the initiative should come from the Centre.
However, unlike HNLC, its counterpart in Garo hills, the ANVC signed a tripartite ceasefire agreement with the government on July 23, 2004. As there was no further notification from the Centre to ban the organisation, it now does not come under the purview of unlawful association.The police official said since 2008, the ANVC is not a banned organisation as its activities are constantly monitored and found to be satisfactory to the government.
The publicity secretary of the ANVC, Arist Sangma, today said though there was no official notification for lifting of ban, the Centre did not include the ANVC under unlawful association for the past two years, which indicates that the outfit was no more a banned organisation.
