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9 Hmar militants surrender in Assam; over 1000 to join mainstream soon: Police
HPC-D is an offshoot of the Hmar People’s Convention (HPC), which came into existence in 1986 as a political party spearheading a movement for self-government in Mizoram
Nine cadres of militant group Hmar People’s Convention Democracy (HPC-D) surrendered with arms and explosives in Assam’s Cachar district on Wednesday evening.
Superintendent of police of Cachar district, Numal Mahatta said the militants surrendered in Lakhipur area in the presence of senior police officials on Wednesday evening.
“A discussion is going on under chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s observation and yesterday’s surrender was just the beginning of a large surrender,” he said.
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According to the SP, apart from Mizoram, the HPC-D militants are active in Cachar district and surrounding areas including some parts of Manipur, Nagaland and Meghalaya. They are in talks with the government and the administration is trying to bring them back to the mainstream by fulfilling their demands.
“Surrender is a long process and the militants need to be identified properly. After the surrender, they get special identity cards through which, they’ll get the facilities assured to them,” Mahatta added.
According to the senior officials of Assam police, HPC-D is an offshoot of the Hmar People’s Convention (HPC), which came into existence in 1986 as a political party spearheading a movement for self-government in Mizoram.
“They are active in the border areas of Cachar district and their activities were noticed in Lakhipur. On Wednesday, they surrendered arms and explosives to show that they are ready to join the mainstream life,” an official said.
According to sources, over a thousand Hmar militants will surrender in Cachar district in January next year.
Mahatta said the upcoming surrender will be bigger than that of Hailakandi.
“High-level talks are going on and we cannot reveal much at this moment but this will be one of the largest surrenders in history,” he said.
Over 1,100 Bru militants surrendered with arms and explosives in Assam’s Hailakandi district on December 12 in the presence of Assam assembly speaker Biswajit Daimary and minister Pijush Hazarika.
Daimari claimed most of the tribal people in Assam took up weapons because they were deprived off basic rights for generations post India’s independence.
“They were angry because the government and society deprived them for generations. Now, they are returning to the mainstream and it is our responsibility to fulfill the promises,” Daimari said.
