Agartala: Four days after the Tripura police arrested three facilitators of the banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT), four militants who underwent training in Bangladesh surrendered before the security forces after fleeing from their camps on January 31 last year.
The four returnees have been identified as Sethi Debbarma (20), Rajib Debbarma (18), Bishram Reang (21) and Zawmina Reang (27), who fled their Silachari camps under Bagaichari police station of Rangamati district in neighbouring Bangladesh.
A statement issued by the Tripura police said that the four men fled their camps on January 31, contacted the state special branch, Assam Rifles and field officers, expressing their willingness to join the mainstream of life.
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Two of them were brought to SB headquarters in Agartala and two in the North district for interrogation. During preliminary investigation, it was revealed that the men joined the banned outfit in 2018 and 2019 at a Bangladesh NLFT Camp.
“During field experience of this extremist cadre, they realized that their so-called fight for Independence of Tripura is a farce attempt and has no future prospect towards the overall development of the tribal population of the state. On the other hand, presently, NLFT group is facing serious financial crisis,” the statement said.
“They also got fed up with the group due to jhum cultivation and other hard fatigue duties at the behest of their luxurious leaders, feeling frustrated with the present predicament of NLFT organisation. With constant pressure and motivation of Tripura Police, they joined the main stream of the society,” the statement said, quoting the returnees.
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On December 24 last, four top commanders of the banned outfit had surrendered before the police chief with weapons at the police headquarters.
A team of ‘Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal’ of the Home Ministry had visited Tripura earlier in February to record evidence against the two outlawed insurgent outfits. The Home Ministry had imposed a fresh ban of five years on the NLFT and ATTF on October 3, 2018, for their violent and subversive activities.
Tripura shares 856-km long international border with neighbouring Bangladesh, of which about 67-km area is unfenced.
