Head of Assam Police’s Special Branch, Pallab Bhattacharyya stated that social media was helping the militant outfit, United Liberation Front of Assam (Independent), reach people in a much wider way, Indian Express reported.
The ULFA (I) have been suspected by the police to be responsible for the killing of five Bengali-speaking farmers in Tinsukia district in November. However, the outfit has denied involvement in the case.
“I don’t think there is a sudden spurt in recruitment. Recruitment haws going on in the past, too – just that it was taking place silently and was not reflected through social media and sections of the mainstream media as it is now,” Special D-G Bhattacharyya said, quoted in the report.
Bhattacharyya said the resurgence of linguistic fault-lines with the Citizenship Bill remains an important issue. Recruitment was also driven by unemployment, he added, in the IE report.
“For youths coming back from (militant) outfits, we need good rehabilitation policies – with jobs and schemes to ensure that they can sustain. There should also be counselling at school and at home,” he said, as quoted in the report.
According to the report, Bhattacharyya said although there was no immediate data to compare the figures accumulated from September, there has been “no input from other intelligence agencies about any remarkable spurt in the number of cadres in the jungles of Myanmar”.
“My estimate is that overall there are 200-odd active ULFA cadres now,” the officer said, reported IE.
He pointed out that use of social media — propaganda videos and comments promoting pro-ULFA(I) sentiments — is helping the outfit reach people.
“Recently, 85 names of people found to be making pro-ULFA(I) comments on social media have been forwarded to the police in different districts for necessary action, and to counsel them,” Bhattacharyya said, according to IE.
Bhattacharya said, in the IE report. many young people surrender after joining ULFA(I) since they get disillusioned with the militants.
On December 1, a software engineer from Assam’s Dibrugarh joined the outfit. 27-year-old Abhijeet Gogoi claimed in a video on social media platforms that he had picked up arms to “save the Assamese community”.
